Waves of LCL
by PhalanxCrusader
Summary: The world is covered in amber liquid. This story takes place at the End of Evangelion and in the past. What happened to Tokyo-3 in a world of mystery and political intrigue? Dive in and find out the fates of our beloved characters.
1. Introduction

It was dark. So dark in that place. There was nothing. No memories. No light. No concept of existence. It was…warm but dreadful.

_Please… Please…_

He shifted his head to the right. Immediately he felt a sense of being rocked back and forth as if with the tide. Waves spiraled about him as emotions entered into his body. Something was tugging at him…Something beckoned him forth. It was strangely comforting… all he could do was stare at something that began to draw near to him. Visions of a young girl flooded his mind, harkening towards him with gestures of a gentle embrace, while at the same time demanding his presence with a vicious and unquenchable jealousy. The apparition had the aura of being both loving and terrifying, focusing on nothing but the young man in question with a penetrating gaze.

Her eyes were red.

* * *

The young man opened his eyes. Instantly, he went into a fit of coughing and tremors. His body racked violently as he tried to gather his bearings. Panic filled his mind as he realized that he was trapped in a body of nauseating liquid. The stench was overwhelming and he gasped for breath. He tried move his arms and legs, but they seemed to be confined. Apparently he was trapped in a small space. His two arms seemed to be gripping some controls.

_That's right…_ he thought.

Cognition returned to his mind. He was still in his entry plug, and the red liquid around him was LCL. He calmly started to breathe the liquid, knowing that he would not drown upon gasping the oxygen-rich LCL. His eyes widened. He could still breathe, however he barely received any oxygen from each inhalation. Normally, a person would feel totally fine in the comforting liquid. Also, judging from the bad smell and the redder than usual liquid in the plug… it had mostly expired, meaning that some time had passed.

Instinctively, the boy jerked upwards on the controls, and jockeyed his feet around in a semi-standing motion… nothing happened.

_What the…?_

Where was the EVA's response? Or rather, where was the EVA? No lighting was showing up on the usually vivid screens which conveyed a multitude of information for the pilot. In fact, everything in that cockpit was dark. The power must have been out.

The young man realized that he must get out of there. It really was getting too hard to breathe for comfort. He unfastened the safety locks and catapulted himself upwards, towards the top of the long tube. He swam upwards in the LCL until he reached the far top of the entry plug. There was a small escape hatch that was only to be used in emergency. He manually unbolted the latch and began to push. It was stuck in place pretty good, so he had to use all of his force. Finally the door burst open.

He poked his head out of the door.

His eyes widened in disbelief.

* * *

The sky in all its grandeur lay overhead. However, when he tried to get out of the door, the whole capsule seemed to tilt. When his head poked out of the plug, he withheld a sight like none other. For miles… in every direction he could see there was a yellow liquid.

_It can't be…_

It seemed to stretch onwards in every direction… literally like the ocean. Suddenly, he realized why the capsule had tilted. He was literally adrift in this sea of LCL! He scrambled out of the door and onto the entry plug. The whole plug shifted again and he almost fell off, but he managed to balance himself by lying down on the outside of the plug…

Suddenly, he was gripped with a terrible realization. He could see no shorelines, and the LCL stretched for miles… He could not recognize any latitudinal directions because the sky was a strange tinted color as well. He was trapped in a sea of LCL. All he could do was swim in a random direction and see what he could find.

_No…_

He clenched his fist at the realization of what this meant.

"It can't be…" He said aloud to no-one.

The young man dove in head first into the amber liquid. As soon as he dived in, he felt a very vivid sensation.

_Please…_

His eyes widened in the sea of LCL.

That voice… he recognized it. It was tugging at his mind. Suddenly, he felt a very warm, comforting feeling.

_Please Stay…_

It was calling his very soul.

Suddenly, he felt like maybe he should just float in that LCL and sink… It was so warm and inviting. Although it was terrifying, he was sure that he felt a great love in that voice. His mind could only focus on being comforted as he began to sink. He was sure that he saw figures swimming around below him, but oddly he did not care. Blood vessels began to surface on his skin as he felt his resistance drop. The LCL began sticking to him… It was so inviting, so precious, so tantalizing. He wanted to be held. It was vicious in trying to overtake him, but he didn't care… A figure appeared to embrace him and he assumed a fetal position in that vast lake…

_No… it's not true _he thought.

His eyes widened and it felt like he had awoken to the world again. It all came back to him, what had transpired.

"No…" he said, as he began to whirl his arms about and swim to the surface.

"NO!" he yelled. His resolve had returned.

"NOOOOOOOO!" He resurfaced. He felt a great sadness and heart-penetrating gaze coming from the LCL as strange as that sounds, but he narrowed his eyes in focused anger. The LCL kept calling to him in rushed but gentle murmurs… but he heeded the voice no right. He began to swim as he set out to do.

"It's not true…" he told himself.

* * *

He swam in the amber ocean under the strange sky for what seemed like forever. His strength was failing him and the voice kept urging him.

_I will not be beaten._ He thought.

As he swam, an object came into view on the horizon. He was running out of strength, but he swam on determination and resolve alone. The first object was a white EVA unit… it appeared to be crucified and its figure was bloody and managed. It was supported by something as it was lifeless at an angle.

He beheld this sight, but he simply kept swimming past it. It literally did not interest him… only one thing was on his mind. Since it was poised up out of the water, which meant that he was getting to shallower waters, and closer to the shore. He swam by the gory figure, not feeling the slightest bit of hesitation by the intimidating size or the nasty look of its face.

As he approached the shore, another object came into view. This one made him grimace. He hurriedly swam towards it as the sickening realization became evident to him. By now, the desolate shoreline became clear. There were no buildings, no people, no nothing. His feet touched the bottom as he had reached the shallow water at last. However, he did not pause to catch his breath. He simply picked up the pace by running on the solid ground beneath the water.

The figure was a brown EVA-Unit. It was kneeling on its knees, and he face had its mouth outstretched as if it was giving out a grimacing yell.

"IT CAN'T BE!" The boy yelled. He ran to it ignoring how hard it was to run in the water. The unit was beat up and parts of its armor were gone as it oozed a sickening blood into the amber waters.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" He screamed. He reached his hands up to the heavens in a defiant yet defeated manner.

"I NEVER LOSE!" He held that position for a while, screaming to no-one, or perhaps screaming to God or whoever would heed his cry.

_I failed_… the thought flashed across his mind.

He bent to his knees and struck at the ground beneath the water. He did this over and over again

_I failed…_ the painfully evident thought became clear to him, but he resisted.

"FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!"

He finally stopped hitting the floor, and he bowed his head to the earth. After a while of remaining like that he said to himself

"I… failed."

He suddenly felt so utterly alone and abandoned.

Tears clouded his eyes.

With a tear-strewn face, he went over and hugged the leg of his EVA unit.

"I'm sorry... I'M SORRY."

He seemed to have tremendous respect for the machine as he held onto it despite its enormous, towering size over him.

"You did well… You always have." He said, as he caressed the damaged EVA's leg. "It was me…"

_I let them down…_ The thought hit him hard.

He felt guilt mixed with anguish mixed with anger.

"I let them all down… They're all gone"

He took a few steps away from the EVA and looked at the sea.

_Rei…_ he thought.

He dropped to his knees again and began to weep.

_Rei._

"Rei…" he murmured. That thought alone nearly killed him.

Maybe he should just sit there… maybe he should just go back to the LCL and let it take him over. After all, the amber water was so comforting and soothing… he was losing all the will to remain and press on with that knowledge.

However, an image flashed across it mind… it was one of another EVA unit.

He arose, and his anger at himself and at another resurfaced.

His memories were clear… he could still see that EVA unit taunting at him in his mind, laughing at him. Knowing that he would be felled. He could still see his eyes.

"I REFUSE THIS!" he yelled.

That face haunted him… that face of that sinister Evangelion unit mocked him. He looked at him as if he was meant to be trampled by it… to be shamed and disgraced at its hand.

In a sudden outburst of one clear objective, he drew his combat knife that he always kept strapped to his thigh and he headed towards the shore.

"I will kill you." He said with a bold determination from all that was within him. Against all odds, he thought this… nay… he willed his from his being.

He finally left the water and vented onto the shore, with one aim in mind.

* * *

Authors Note: This story has been on my mind for years, and I have finally put it to pen. I am really excited about it and I could have started writing it years ago. I will be devoting my time to this as it means a lot to me. I can't wait to post more chapters! I hope you all enjoy.


	2. Tokyo-3

Rei Ayanami awoke.

Her lithe figure lay sprawled across the bed, tangled in the sheets. The ceiling fan whirred air upon her frame.

_I had that dream again_ she thought.

She slowly began to get up, wincing slightly at the pain of moving her right arm. It was a constant reminder of the extreme stress that Unit-00 put upon her frame. She then moved towards her window and looked out upon Tokyo-3 from the view of her apartment that was several stories off the ground.

_I was surrounded by LCL... and also there was_

She paused, confounded by the same recurring dream. Logically, she felt like she must report any and all action to the higher-ups of NERV.

"I must tell Gendo" she muttered in an emotionless tone.

Rei had always been somewhat fond of Gendo Ikari. She appeared to always want to be at his side, and she would often disappear with Gendo from the others as she was frequently summoned by him personally. She felt "close" to him, if close is the right word, because he had always been with her. When he spoke in a crowd, she never lifted her gaze from his eyes for a second… always attentively listening and staring.

It was natural to want to ask Gendo, because after all both of them were familiar with the amber liquid.

Suddenly she felt something inside… something began to well up in her. It was a feeling. She touched her hand to her chest.

_Also there was…_

Her eyes widened for a second, and a slight blush spread across her cheeks.

"Maybe I should not tell Gendo." She said to herself. Suddenly, she felt the urge to keep the information hidden from that man. However, she began to think that perhaps she could tell someone else.

_Gendo's son…_

"Shinji." She said.

She blinked and touched her cheeks. She breathed a few times.

She remembered what she was supposed to do that day. She donned her usual attire. She had been summed to the Geofront the other day by Gendo to measure her sync ratios with the EVA unit and possibly give Unit-00 another go. She clenched her arm. Suddenly she kneeled to the floor. The pain throughout her body was intense. For some reason, her synchronization rates had been extremely low since the last angel battle. In fact, she was at the point where she could barely manage Unit-00 without succumbing to the sheer pain and torment of piloting it. She arose by using the bed as a support. She left her apartment and headed towards NERV headquarters.

"It is my duty."

* * *

In the large office contained within the Geofront, Gendo Ikari sat as usual at his desk with his arms crossed in front of his face, as well as a cold expression evident. Light flickered off of his glasses. There was a hologram present illuminating the room with a dark backdrop and a single monolith.

"So shall we proceed with the preparations?" A voice said.

"Yes that will be all." He said.

"Excellent. We will proceed as planned" said the voice.

Gendo sighed. He had just sat through a long and monotonous Seele meeting with the projected Seele members obscured by "voice only" numbered boxes. After the arduous meeting, the Seele representative who's number was 03 wanted to speak to Gendo in private. They had just finished that transmission as the number 03 disappeared into the background.

Kozo Fuyutsuki, with a billboard full of important documents in hand, approached Gendo.

"Sir, are you sure that was a wise decision?"

Gendo sighed, the stress evident in his voice. He leaned back in his chair, arms raised high in an unusual tired expression.

"No." He said. Suddenly, he returned to his standard serious gaze and looked at Fuyutsuki.

"But this may be advantageous for us."

Fuyutsuki looked at him and nodded.

"Yes sir." He said.

He smirked. Fuyutsuki had known Gendo for a long time, and one could even say that they were old-time friends. In fact, he knew Gendo so well that he could practically sense the irritation and stress streaming off of Gendo's brow. He knew that NERV was in a desperate situation and that Gendo was taking all of it upon his shoulders. Fuyutsuki observed his schedule for the day at NERV headquarters.

"Sir, Rei Ayanami will be here shortly for the synchronization test."

Gendo stared at Fuyutsuki.

"I will see to her personally."

Fuyutsuki paused.

"Sir…"

Gendo raised his eyebrow.

"It's just that… shouldn't we bring Shinji as well?"

Gendo arose and began walking towards the door. As he looked over his shoulder at his old friend, he said a simple

"No."

* * *

Shinji Ikari lay in his bed, his S-DAT still playing with one ear piece in his ear. He had been up for a while already, but he liked lying down in the darkness of his own room and reflecting. He stared up at the ceiling.

He still didn't know how to feel about the fact that he piloted EVA Unit-01.

He sighed.

Shinji had saved Tokyo-3 from utter obliteration on 4 separate occasions from the angels. He, along with his two female companions had saved the world… and several times at that. The thought to him was incomprehensible, much less feasible that he was hailed as NERV's savior. He recalled instances where he was so close to death's door.

However, there had been a relative peace for a while. Ever since Shinji and Asuka had defeated the aquatic angel Gaghiel, all seemed to be calm on the horizon. However, that calm felt more like a harbinger of something bad to happen, like the calm that comes before the storm.

_I… just don't know_. He thought.

It was proven time and again that he had what it took to be a hero. However, the young boy still doubted himself at times. Shinji had felt an overwhelming loneliness when he first became the pilot of EVA-01. He still felt a gaping loneliness inside at times, but he knew that others were sharing his experience now.

Even after seeing the horror of the angels at firsthand experience, there was something else that plagued his mind right now, or rather someone.

_Maybe I should talk to her… But what if…_

Shinji shook his head back and forth and closed his eyes.

_I have to know_.

Shinji had slowly but surely been building up his self-confidence, though he still had doubts at time. However, there was one thing he knew for sure.

Ever since he had met the First Child, he could not get her penetrating gaze out of his mind. There was something about her, even when she seemed to be completely emotionless. Something about her… He had caught her staring at him several times.

He began thinking about Rei and put a pillow over his face.

Suddenly, the door to his room burst open.

"Shinji will you get up already!"

He put the pillow down to look at who the intruder to his inner sanctum was, just to get another pillow tossed at his face with great force from Asuka.

"Geese do you know what time it is already sleepyhead?" she said as she crossed her arms with a "Hmph" look on her face.

"Ahhh sorry, I'm coming Asuka." He said with a hint of embarrassment.

As he was getting up, he scolded himself mentally.

_Ahhh stop apologizing all the time_.

"Baka, a man shouldn't be apologizing all the time." said Asuka. She smirked.

_I knew she would say something like that!_ He thought.

"I have had nothing to eat without your cooking all day."

Shinji quickly got up and looked at Asuka.

He smiled.

_I'm so glad that I'm not the only one… The only EVA pilot_.

"Eh? What are you staring at me for? You should be moving to the kitchen already!"

Shinji laughed.

_Also, life has become more interesting ever since she moved in_.

"It's nothing… I'm just about to prepare the rice. Because I know that you can't go two seconds without food."

* * *

Asuka whined in a comedic matter as she sat on a chair nearest to the oven.

"Is it ready yet!?"

Misato slammed a beer down onto the table.

"Hey Shinji we're ready to eat!" she exclaimed.

"It's ready." He said, as he quickly brought the cuisine to the table.

_Well, Misato's already drunk…_ he thought and sighed. There were already 5 empty beer cans on the table.

"WOOOOOOW Shinji that… you know that looks… GREAT!" Misato exclaimed between a hiccup.

Asuka brimmed up visibly. Shinji chuckled.

"It's about time Shinji! Geese, what took so long?"

"Itadakimsu."

They all began to eat.

"So guys… what are you doing with your day off!?" Misato exclaimed.

Shinji and Asuka looked at her, than at each other.

"I've got some AWESOME plans… we could…" Misato continued, but not before taking a huge swig of beer.

Suddenly Shinji said "Yeah, it would be nice to do something all together." He paused.

"So where is Rei today?"

Misato finished the beer can and slammed it down.

"Oh, well she has another synchronization test today. She may not be able to join us… I feel bad for that girl sometimes."

Shinji and Asuka looked at each other knowingly. They both knew that as of late, Rei had been having some extreme problems managing Unit-00. In fact, dangerously so. Shinji knew that there was an intense strain on her body.

Everyone got quiet for a second.

"Misato…" Shinji began. "Would it be alright if I went to NERV today?"

"Oh" she exclaimed. "But you're not called in for today. And you have the day off from school! It could be some time for some awesome bonding time MISATO style." She winked.

Suddenly, Shinji arose from the table.

_Rei…_

"Ummm hey I think I will go to NERV today. You guys have fun today alright?"

Before they could question him he was out the door.

"SHINJI!" Asuka began, but he was out. "Honestly, that boy who does he think he is, just getting up and going like that?"

Misato smirked.

"He probably wants to see Rei."

_I'm proud of you Shinji_ she thought.

She opened another can of beer.

"So Asuka… I know what I'M doing with your guys' day off." She winked again.

Asuka was not sure if she should be excited or scared at her tone.

"Ummmm…"

* * *

"Alright Rei, we're ready to proceed." Gendo said. Rei was in her EVA suit inside of the entry plug hooked up to an array of wires.

Fuyutsuki stepped up to the microphone.

"Rei… are you sure you are ready to try again? You don't…"

Gendo gave him a stern look.

"I'm ready." Rei replied with her usual tone. However, she was having trouble focusing on the task at hand for something else was on her mind.

_Shinji…_

Rei paused. She had been having more intense thoughts recently. She blinked.

"You know what to do Rei." Gendo began. "Focus on synchronizing with Unit-00."

"Yes sir." She replied.

She closed her eyes and concentrated.

"So far her sync rate is barely 30%" Ritsuko said to Gendo. She was monitoring the equipment and computer screens necessary for the procedure.

She took the microphone.

"Rei, try emptying your mind. Focus solely on the experiment… But you don't have to push yourself."

Gendo looked at her.

She put her hand on the microphone and said "You know I'm right."

Rei began to increase her concentration.

_Empty my mind…_

Suddenly she felt extreme pain all over her body. It was agonizing, and worse than usual.

"Her sync rate and condition appear to be deteriorating…" Ritsuko mused.

_Shinji…_ Rei thought again. _I just want…_

"Sync rate at 35%" Ritsuko said.

Suddenly Rei began to crumble. The pain was almost unbearable. She unfastened her right arm and held it around her body.

"Sir… we should really stop the tests at this rate." Misato said.

"Continue" Gendo said over the microphone.

"Sir! This is getting into dangerous territory. We have to stop if you care about the wellbeing of Rei."

"Rei." Gendo said. "You have to try harder."

Rei put her arm back in the holder and gave it everything that was within her.

_I wish…_

"Sync rate at 37,38,…" Ritsuko said, nervousness visible on her face.

Rei experienced tremors across her whole body and entered a coughing fit. The pain tugged at her consciousness.

"Sync rate falling! 35,30,25."

* * *

Shinji was on the secret elevator that transported its carriers directly to NERV in the Geofront. He beheld the stunning view as always of the world underground.

_I just..._

As soon as he heard that Rei was having another sync test, he knew of the dangers. She had been in a terrible condition recently.

_I just have to see her_.

When he arrived at the bottom, he used his NERV identification card to enter through a door. He was greeted by Maya Ibuki.

"Oh Shinji!" she waved at him.

"Hi" he said, somewhat nervously.

"Hey, you're not expected in today."

Shinji paused.

"Well, I just thought of coming in today." The nervousness was evident on his face.

Maya stared at him, and chuckled.

"Okay, I guess once you're in NERV you just can't stay away right? People would be glad to know that you're here!"

"Yeah…" Shinji exclaimed.

They began a walk up some stairs of the underground corridor.

"Oh yeah, Rei is underground a sync test right now."

"Yeah I heard from Misato." Shinji said. He looked towards the ground than back up at Maya.

"Could I possibly go up to the test room?"

"Yeah! What a surprise that would be!"

"Yeah…" Shinji remarked.

_This isn't weird or anything, right?_ He thought.

She had a knowing look on her face and she chuckled.

_Ummmm_ he thought.

She lead him up the proper paths, and they finally arrived at the synchronization testing chambers. Shinji saw many familiar faces there, but they were to busy with the test to see him. He looked out the window towards the entry plug. He heard Ritsuko talking rapidly about the test and Rei's sync rates.

_This doesn't look good!_

"Rei!"

* * *

"Sir, we have to stop the test!" Ritsuko exclaimed, ready to abort.

"Rei, try harder. I know you can do this." He said with a cold expression.

_Shinji_…

Her body was racked with pain. She was on the verge of blacking out and all of her joints felt extremely constricted. Her eyes were closed and she was in an unending world of torment.

She opened her eyes weakly. They widened. On the virtual display inside her capsule, she could see Shinji watching her from the group.

Everyone in the group heard Shinji call Rei's name.

"Shinji, when did you get here?" Ritsuko exclaimed.

Gendo glanced towards Shinji with a stern look.

"Um well I…" he began than he paused.

He saw that Rei was staring right at him on the virtual display in the room.

_Shinji_…

He locked eyes with her on the display and stared. Her crimson eyes never left his.

"Sir! Her synchronization rates are improving!" Ritsuko yelled.

Rei continued to stare at Shinji from the entry plug.

"We're back to 30%... 35, 40, 45 and rising."

For some reason Rei no longer thought about her world of pain. The pain began to recede and she felt at ease.

"50, 60, 70"

Rei truly felt a connection with Unit-00.

Shinji was wide-eyed and unsure of how to respond. She kept looking straight at him.

_That gaze…_

"Rei" he said.

"Sir this is unprecedented. She is 80%, 85, 87… and stabilizing around 85."

That rate was incredibly good, especially considering by her body language that she was not feeling strain. That was a great rate for synchronization for a healthy pilot, let alone one who was enduring taxing bodily and mental stress before achieving that ratio. That was Rei's best score. Everyone stood amazed at what was transpiring.

Rei felt totally at ease inside of the LCL fluid. She felt like she was meant for this.

"Well I guess it's good that you came after all Shinji!" Ritsuko exclaimed, full of disbelief.

_She's still looking at me_

"Yeah I guess so." He said, visibly flustered.

* * *

A plane whirred through the sky. The enormous B-2 style transport plane was over the ocean heading towards its Tokyo-3 destination.

A boy sat next to the window, looking out at the horizon.

A man came next to him and grinned.

"Are you ready for this?"

He said nothing and continued to look out the window, with a grave on his face.


	3. NERV

"That was not in the original plan." Gendo exclaimed. He sat in his chair facing five numbered SEELE monoliths.

"Gendo" said the monolith numbered 01. In a rare action for anyone on the SEELE committee, Keel Lorenz revealed his face on video chat to talk with Gendo in a private room.

"It was necessary to push our plans forward. This is the perfect opportunity."

"Why was I not informed of this?"Gendo said harshly, the irritation blatant on his face. He was having a hard time controlling his anger. Basically, he just found out that the SEELE council had rushed forward with preparations behind his back, and it was not quite the details that they had talked about previously. Sure, Gendo did not trust anyone on that council in the first place, but this... Now his patience was being severely tested.

"Gendo you…" Lorenz began, but he was swiftly interrupted.

"Why was the rendezvous location changed to NERV HQ?" Gendo proclaimed.

Keel Lorenz paused and remained silent.

"I was not informed of this decision." Gendo said. He was resisting every urge to yell. He took a deep breath and retained his cool, stern disposition.

"Gendo, I understand your concern, However we deemed this the safest countermeasure to deal with this threat."

Gendo looked at him and said nothing. Their eyes stared intently at each other underneath those glasses, each with the utmost serious look etched upon their faces.

"Gendo, it is no secret that NERV HQ in Tokyo-3 is the most technologically advanced center in the world right now. You are leaps and bounds ahead of our allied NERV centers and UN bastions of any location when it comes the EVA units. NERV HQ has been the forerunner to everything that we know and have in the world today."

Gendo looked at him and said nothing, displaying the air that he should continue what he was saying.

"I'm sure you know that the emergence of that child… has been troubling our allies."

Gendo looked at the dossier which contained the child's file. He had read every detail ten times over about the child.

"Of course, considering that that has been all we have discussing in our last meetings." Gendo remarked with some irritation.

"We agreed that the best course of action was to send him to the most secure location on earth, where he can be detained and studied." Lorenz said.

"With all due respect, I feel like that would endanger everyone at this facility and put our plans in check." Gendo exclaimed.

"Gendo… you are the only one on this council I can even trust. It is like a den of vipers. Everyone… Everyone is out for their own interests concerning the EVA." Lorenz took off his glasses, and a look of worry was on his face.

"Gendo please… do this for me. You know that only Tokyo-3 can contain this situation."

Gendo looked at the file again. Not only was this child supposedly a brilliant pilot. In fact, his synchronization rates had been unheard of to this point. They were so high, in fact, that literally the pilots' own movements reflected the EVA's movements perfectly. Any other human would die at those levels from strain or even moving their body, not that they could reach those levels anyways. It was no wonder that every political branch in the world was debating this topic incessantly. The potential success of this pilot or the danger he posed was simply too much not to devote your entire time discussing countermeasures. No… it was his location that troubled him the most.

"Keel, I understand your reasoning. But it's just that…"

"He's from NERV-02 station in Nevada." Keel interrupted him, as if he read his mind.

"That is the worst part about this. Had he emerged in any NERV facility outside of that country, we would all feel relieved, if not uplifted about this situation."

It was no secret that ever since the Second Impact occurred, the United States… well, to put it bluntly, had gone to shit. What was once the United Nation's most prominent ally in the world and a supplier of advanced technologies and research had become a political dark zone. There were rumors of violence from behind the nation's borders and murmurs of political upheaval. No one in this day and age was really sure what happened behind that nation's borders. While many were enthused that the self-proclaimed "leader of the free world" had shut their trap, stopped intruding in other country's affairs, and retreated behind their borders, it had caused a grave cause for alarm. In fact, the UN only acknowledged the nation's two NERV branches (if indeed the United States was still a sovereign nation) out of fear and because they wanted to keep tabs on their activities.

Gendo sat with his arms crossed in front of his face, deep in thought.

"If I agree to this, I need some sort of assurance on your part in case things go wrong." Gendo finally said.

"Vienna." Keel said.

"The training exercise for EVA pilots that was scheduled this month at UN headquarters. It has been moved to Tokyo-3. We have deemed that Tokyo-3 if the safest location for the exercise. Also, that way we can all deal personally with this threat."

Gendo looked at him, as if considering his options. That did make sense. The training exercise was a meeting where the world's current EVA pilots met. It served as a peaceful demonstration to share technologies, and to ultimately affirm alliances in a world where trust was deteriorating. It was important to remind the nations that they were all allied against their common enemy: the angels. For the sake of prestige, it could be a power-play. It was becoming evident in the world that NERV HQ in Tokyo-3 held the real power, not the United Nations. It was slowly becoming the center for the alliance against angels, and it made sense to have the meeting where the real power was in the world.

"I… will consider this." Gendo remarked.

"They need to have hope… Our allies need someone to look up to. The UN just can't be that leader in these desperate times. Let's be honest, without NERV HQ, we would have all fallen to the angels. Everyone knows this." Lorenz added.

"Right. Very well, I will make reasonable accommodations." Gendo said.

"Thank you my old friend." Lorenz said.

"And Gendo… watch him closely. Be very careful."

The transmission ended.

Gendo sighed as he leaned back into his chair. So many things had been piled upon his shoulders, partly behind his back, by people he didn't really trust.

_Could this day get any worse?_

Fuyutsuki entered the room, and noticed the visible irritation on Gendo's face.

"Sir, is there anything I can get you?"

Gendo thought for a moment.

"Just the usual tea… and some scotch."

* * *

Shinji walked in a hurried pace with Asuka towards NERV. Views of crumbling and dilapidated buildings dotted the landscape of Tokyo-3.

_An emergency meeting… I wonder what this could be about_ Shinji thought, as he tried to keep up with Asuka.

"Shinji, hurry up you're lagging behind." Asuka exclaimed, as she continued her brisk pace.

"Ahhh, sorry." Shinji began.

_DAMMIT!_ He mentally chastised himself.

"So Asuka, what do you think this meeting is all about? I'm not…" Shinji began, but he was interrupted instantly.

"Is something, or someone on your mind?" Asuka asked, as she smirked.

Shinji showed a face of panic for a brief second.

_What is she talking about… Could she know?_

"Baka, Misato told me everything yesterday. She told me how Rei went totally gaga over you at her sync test."

Shinji stared wide-eyed at her for a second, trying to regain his composure. He began following her again.

"Well… that was… kind of weird. I mean… Rei…" He was visibly flustered and stuttering over his words worse than when they first met.

_Bingo_ she thought.

Suddenly she stopped walking and faced Shinji. Her face suddenly was devoid of the playful mockery that Shinji was used to seeing when approaching Asuka. She suddenly looked very serious, if not a little shy.

"Shinji… what do you think of the first child?"

Shinji could not contain his nervousness or bewilderment at those words.

_What do I say, what do I say, what do I say?_ He thought over in his head in a half a second.

_Shit… _

"Well…" he began.

"Rei is…" his eyes widened to unimaginable heights.

_RIGHT OVER THERE!_

Shinji and Asuka stood a bit away from the hidden entrance to the underground elevator. Right next to the security device which validated authentic NERV Identifications stood Rei, looking at them.

Shinji froze in his tracks completely.

_Oh… my…_

"Rei! Hey!" Shinji blurted out somewhat awkwardly.

Asuka looked at Shinji with an 'I know what you are thinking Baka' kind of look.

"Shinji..." Rei said. She stared at him with those crimson eyes.

_Ahhh she keeps staring at me!_

Shinji looked at her, but a visible blush was coming over his face, so he looked away for a second. He looked back.

_She's still looking at me!_

Those eyes were penetrating, longing… so deep.

"Shinji." Rei continued.

"I waited for you here knowing that we all were going to NERV."

If Shinji wasn't already flustered, his panic mode/embarrassment was through the roof and he was having trouble containing himself.

"You… You were? Why… Why is th-that?"

"I wanted to talk to Shinji." She remarked.

Asuka watched the whole situation, her irritation growing more present.

"Whatever, let's go!"

She boarded the elevator. They followed. Their long descent at a slanted angle began.

Rei focused intently on Shinji the whole ride down. Shinji felt like a rock between two hard places. He was not sure how to react between the two women. He kept feeling Rei staring straight into him… than he would look at Asuka and her irritation at the unfolding situation. She had a dash of anger on her face, but was trying to play it cool with her arms crossed against the other side of the elevator. He felt extremely nervous, but tried to compose himself.

"Shinji, I had a dream." Rei said.

Shinji froze in place. He literally looked away from Rei as if he was looking out the window to hide his visible disposition.

"Wow, now she's having dreams about you. And I thought it was enough seeing you in person." Asuka muttered, as she rolled her eyes. She looked away from both of them with a 'hmph' look evident upon her face.

_What do I do?_ Shinji thought.

"Really?" he said. "That's…"

"Shinji." She said softly.

He looked back towards her, and he had come really close to his face. The enigmatic first child was right in front of him, staring into his eyes.

"I need to discuss it with you alone. It would be best to talk when Asuka is not around."

Asuka nearly burst a blood vessel on her face.

_She did not just say that_. Asuka obtained a look of full born rage on her face.

Shinji was nearly at his limit for what he could stand without being reduced to a gelatinous, spineless pile of ooze in the corner.

"Yeah we should talk." He said, feeling so embarrassed but so utterly amazed at what was happening. He managed to say those words out of instinct and out of his sheer time spent thinking about Rei.

_I can't believe this is happening._ He thought. He now stared deeply into Rei's eyes, and let himself be drawn in by her gaze.

His mind was brought back down to earth from his dopamine rush when he looked at Asuka.

He suddenly looked nervous again.

_I can't believe this is happening!_ He yelled in his mind.

"Rei…" Asuka muttered under her breath. She appeared to have a dark aura surrounding her.

_I have to think of something…_ Shinji thought. The tension in the air was almost visible to the naked eye.

Suddenly, the elevator beeped. They had reached their destination.

_YES!_

"Well, we're here." Shinji mentioned to the two EVA pilots.

"We should get going to that emergency meeting."

Shinji stepped out the door first, the two girls slowly following.

_Bullet dodged_.

* * *

They all sat in the giant chamber deep in the confines of NERV. The room consisted of several computers alongside one wall. Also, there was a massive glass panel that enabled people from the chamber to look out on EVA Unit-01.

Misato and Ritsuko were in the room as well. Shinji looked at Misato.

She looked utterly serious and focused.

_This must be serious…_ he thought. Usually, she would have made some joking or uplifting remark by now.

Suddenly, the giant sliding doors to the room slid open, and Gendo entered, followed by Fuyutsuki.

"Thank you all for coming." Gendo said.

"As some of you have been briefed, we are receiving a new pilot today at NERV."

Shinji blinked several times.

_A new pilot!?_

He looked over at Rei and Asuka, and they both seemed quite puzzled as well.

Misato looked at Ritsuko and nodded.

"They just landed and they have brought EVA Unit-04 with them."

He paused to let them take that all in.

_Wow…I know that there are other Evangelion units in the world…but still._ thought Shinji. It was commonly known that other NERV centers had produced EVA units as well. However how many there were and how technological they were uncertain. Compared to a few other children across various UN districts, it was arguable that NERV HQ in Tokyo-3 was leaps and bounds ahead of the other stations.

"Send them in." he said into a microphone.

After a few moments, the sound of footsteps on the metal could be heard clanking towards their location.

A procession of people emerged from the darkness. A blonde-haired boy who looked a little bit older than the other three EVA-pilots came into view. However, that was not his most defining feature…

Shinji's eyes widened.

_What the… heck!?_

The young man was wearing an orange jumpsuit. Also, his hands were shackled by handcuffs at the front of his body. Two guards appeared behind him, watching his every movement.

_Is he… a prisoner!?_

Everyone watched the procession with disbelief.

_That's the new pilot? How can this be?_

The man on his right spoke up.

"I'm Commander Michaels with the USAF. And you are probably wondering who this is. Son, why don't you tell them your name?" He grinned.

The boy stood there with a very intense look on his face. He looked to the ground with some worry visible in his eyes.

The Commander suddenly had a look full of anger.

"I said… Introduce yourself!" He suddenly lunged at the back of the boy's head with his right fist, causing him to fall to the ground.

Everyone was shocked at this sudden outburst.

Misato stood up with an angry look. "What the fuck was that!"

Misato ran over towards the young man and said "Gendo, how is this possible!?"

Shinji stood up, eyes wide.

_This isn't right!_

"With all due respect." Michaels began.

"If you knew what he has done, you would not be so quick to defend him. This boy… is very dangerous."

Misato stopped in her tracks, visibly disgusted with this action. She looked towards Gendo and he motioned her back, as if to say stand down. She begrudgingly returned to her seat.

The boy clenched his fists on the ground and grit his teeth, a look of anger coming over his face. However, his worried expression returned and he stood to his feet.

"… It's William."

_These Americans…_ Ritsuko thought, as she looked towards Gendo Ikari.

_Sir, what will you do?_

Michaels came behind William and put his hands on his shoulders.

"This is a very excellent child. But he is dangerous. He would probably kill everyone if given the chance to pilot."

Everyone was feeling very uneasy in the room.

William's body trembled slightly and his eyes narrowed in anger. What was more unnerving is that Michaels ran his hands a few inches down onto his chest. It looked very demeaning, and honestly was a personal space barrier that should not be violated by anyone, let alone by someone in authority.

Michael's grinned.

"Oh, you have some great children here." He said as he took a few steps towards the group.

_Oh man…_ Shinji thought. This was really uncomfortable, if not creepy.

"Really good children." He grinned again, staring right at Shinji.

Shinji swallowed nervously.

Michaels stepped back and returned to William's side.

Asuka had a serious look on her face.

_Scheiße!_ _What the hell? Why are these damn Americans here?_

Rei had been staring at William this whole time, and seemed to be in deep thought.

"I think there should be some introductions." Michaels said to William, while they were very close to each other.

William looked at Michaels slowly, than at Shinji.

"Shinji… I have heard of you." He said.

Shinji looked at the new pilot, feeling a tremor run through is body.

He expected the young man to be glaring at him. He was extremely angry, but he seemed to look through Shinji… it was not directed towards him. However, there was something in his face… He looked almost sad.

Shinji locked eyes with him.

There was something in the way that he had been addressed… His look seemed very sincere. There was something in those eyes that revealed extreme pain.

_What do I say?_

"… Nice to meet you... Welcome to Tokyo-3." Shinji replied.

_Ahhh that sounded really dumb._ He thought.

"Have you arranged a place?" Michaels suddenly said to Gendo.

Gendo nodded.

"Very well, the introduction is complete." Gendo remarked.

He nodded at Michaels.

William looked to the floor, with a grave look etched upon his face.

"Reasonable accommodations have been made, just follow us this way."

Gendo and Fuyutsuki walked back out the giant opening. Michaels prodded William. William grit his teeth again in anger. Reluctantly, he turned and followed the procession.

_What is going on?_ Thought Shinji.

* * *

Everyone sat in that room, speechless from the events that had transpired. They were all trying to process what had just happened… what the hell that was.

"Who the hell are these guys? Asuka began.

"And why is a damn prisoner piloting?" She crossed her arms.

"I don't like this at all..." Misato said.

Rei suddenly locked onto Shinji's arm.

_Whaaaat?..._ Suddenly his nervousness returned to him.

"We must talk tonight." She said to him, in a voice barely louder than a whisper.

Shinji's eyes widened.

* * *

Deep within NERV headquarters, Ritsuko was monitoring the MAGI supercomputer system and doing some late-night maintenance. There were countless screens detailing the processing information of NERV and all of its internal facilities. She was searching through some encryption files about the EVA units… when suddenly she heard something on the microphone next to her.

_I… want…. you.._.

Ritsuko paused. Did she just hear something on one of the speakers? There were several speakers arrayed next to the screens, each corresponding to different locations of activity taking place in NERV.

_I… want…you…_

It was very faint, but it sounded like someone was talking over the intercom. It sounded so faint, in fact, that she thought she was just imagining it.

_I… can't… wait._

She was sure that she heard an audible voice, but it was still so faint and quiet. And this voice…. Sounded very disturbing in nature. She checked on a monitor screen to show the location of this sound.

"Terminal 07… but that's the holding cell for prisoners." She said. Suddenly, she realized that that was where William had been transported to.

_I WAAAANT YOOOUUU!_

Ritsuko did a double take. That was definitely a voice. It was louder that time like a stirring wind, and it definitely startled her.

Ritsuko headed over to Terminal 07 to investigate. As she walked, she reassured herself.

"Ritsuko… it's all in your head. That or I stumbled onto something in MAGI's files. I'll have to check over them again."

Ritsuko arrived in the holding cells area. She approached William's cell, to find him standing up in the middle of the room breathing heavily.

"William… are you okay?" She said, noting his look.

He looked at her from behind the bars. Ritsuko could have sworn that he looked injured with some marks on his face.

"Yeah… I'm okay." He replied. He hands were in fists, and he seemed extremely fatigued.

"I… just like training when I can."

Ritsuko sighed.

"Alright, well keep it down next time, you nearly startled me." She said, as she turned to leave.

"Yes… I'm sorry."

"Hey, I don't know what you did, but I don't like how those guys handled you…If it was up to me…" Ritsuko said, that last part partly to herself.

She left the hallway full of prison holding cells.

William had a grave look on his face and his breathing intensified. He clutched his fists tighter than before, and turned to face the other side of his cell.

Suddenly, there appeared some faint breathing from that direction. The light turned off from in his cell. Two eyes seemed to appear from the darkness.

William's eyes widened.


	4. Entry Plug

The man wore slacks and a buttoned-up shirt with a tie. One would assume that he retained the air of professionalism had it not been for several buttons near the collar that were unbuttoned and the tie being slightly uneven. He stood before the head of NERV HQ, Gendo Ikari, and his cold hard gaze. This would normally be an extremely intimidating ordeal considering the power and clout that Gendo held had it been this man's first time seeing him in person. He calmly lit a cigarette and took a puff.

"You know, it is somewhat nostalgic being back here." He smirked.

"Ryoji Kaji…" Gendo said under his breath. Something had always irritated him about this man… The way he could be so easy-going while he knew that something else was going on. What was worse is that he knew that his investigative work was spot-on, so he really couldn't complain.

"NERV-03 was getting old." Kaji said, remarking about his time in Germany.

"Kaji I know why you're here… and I'll allow it." Gendo remarked on his stern face.

_Wow… to the point as ever._ Kaji thought.

"Well, you know I have several reasons to visit Tokyo-3 with the sights and all" Kaji began, having a look of amusement on his face.

_I wonder where Misato has ended up this time._

"Kaji. I am saying that I will not question your methods or your long absence, even though I could have you detained on the spot."

A serious look crossed Kaji's normally warm, out-going demeanor.

_He must really need my help…_ Kaji could sense the frustration on Gendo's face. He usually looked irritated and frustrated, however he looked at Kaji with a semi-trusting look, which never happened.

"Gendo, where are they staying?"

"We have the Americans at a site on the surface in Tokyo-3, close to the Western Entrance. It is the block where we host all diplomatic visitors. As for the child, he is being held in custody here in NERV."

"Understood." Kaji remarked, as he turned to exit Gendo's office.

_I have to see them and verify for myself…_ he thought. By now his cigarette was down to the butt, so he flicked it in the nearest garbage can.

* * *

It was nighttime in Tokyo-3. A few lights donned the previously stunning skyline of the city, indicating the utter absence of people and abandonment of previously thriving communities. Shinji walked down an abandoned street several miles from his house. He was deep in thought about the events that had transpired earlier in the day.

_This new pilot… what is it about him?_ He thought to himself. No-one had reacted overly well to the news of the new pilot and his guards. The whole ordeal left everyone feeling very uneasy and unsure about what this meant.

_Also…_ a slight red tint donned his cheeks. Rei had personally invited him over that night, and he was heading towards her apartment.

"Is this… for real?" He said to no-one in particular.

_The way she talked to me earlier… it seemed like…_ Shinji was already starting to lose his composure, and he hadn't even seen Rei yet!

_Dammit focus! It has to be something important…_ After all, he was thinking about the usually stoic Rei who showed no hint of emotion. But something seemed different about her ever since her test. She seemed to be… very warm towards Shinji.

He finally arrived at Rei's dilapidated apartment. It was evident that Rei was the only person still living here, if not one of a few tenants seeing as there were no signs of life in any nearby buildings, and no vehicles in the parking lot. He looked towards her window on the fifth floor. It was open and there was a light on in there.

_Oh man... This is really happening_.

Shinji entered the vacant building and immediately approached the elevator. It was very dusty and seemed to be rusted in parts… He had to put his inner cleanliness man on hold. He pressed the fifth floor button. The elevator churned slowly.

Shinji arrived on the fifth floor, and approached her door. It was cracked open, as if expecting a visitor. Shinji stood there for a minute, trying to compose himself. He realized that he had really wanted to see her and he went in despite his embarrassment. He wasn't sure what would happen or how he would feel, but he had to know. He opened the door.

"Rei, I'm here." He called out. There was no response.

He took a few steps in, and suddenly heard the shower on in the bathroom.

_Rei's in the shower…_ he thought. He was on a mental tight rope between grinning madly to himself at the prospects of that and having a nervous breakdown.

He stood there for a moment, and the water stopped.

_I'm not sure if she heard me…_

"Rei…" he called out again.

Just then, the door opened, and Rei walked out holding a towel… wearing nothing but her panties.

"Shinji." she said.

He caught a glimpse of her figure for a half-second, and instantly turned around with his hands over his eyes.

"AHHH Rei, I'm sorry!" He stuttered, the redness literally covering his whole body.

Rei beheld his bewilderment, and felt what could be considered as… a rush. She was confused by the feeling. For some reason, she stopped breathing for a few seconds.

_Shinji saw me._

"Shinji, I need to dress myself."

"YEEAAAH go ahead no problem!" He choked out.

Although he was evidently turning to mush from embarrassment and his legs were giving way… Shinji was a man. Shinji, as he had never done before, began to hear the voice of his 'inner-man' speak to him.

_You've done well my boy, you've done well._ The inner-man winked and grinned at him.

Shinji grinned all over and trembled slightly, the pleasure evident on his face. But he began to attempt to compose himself. As if it wasn't hard enough just going there.

Rei dressed herself in her usual school attire.

"Shinji you can look now."

Shinji hesitantly… very hesitantly turned around, his hands over his eyes by his natural instinct. He looked at her and she was dressed.

"Rei, I'm sorry the door was opened and I…" he began.

"It's alright." Rei said.

She stared deeply at Shinji with her penetrating Crimson eyes.

Shinji's bodily blush began to return.

_AHHHHHHHH she's staring at me_.

"Shinji, I've wanted to discuss something with you… I feel that it is appropriate now that we are in a private location."

Shinji, with every ounce restrained his blush and his inner-man. He stepped closer to Rei.

"What is on your mind?"

"Shinji…" she began, but hesitated a moment, which was unusual for the girl.

"I had an unusual dream, and I felt like I needed to share it with you."

Shinji nodded, his brain buzzing at the prospects.

She looked down to the floor.

"I have had this recurring dream that I was… surrounded by LCL. It seemed like I was in an ocean. I thought that I should tell Gendo about this anomaly but… I felt that I should tell you instead."

Shinji's eyes widened. He felt touched that she would want to share something so personal with him. He stared at her, ready to hear whatever it was she had to say.

"Rei, I'm here for you. You can tell me anything." He said, feeling a surge of genuine confidence and concern.

"Shinji. When I saw that pilot today, I felt like I knew him from somewhere. I was sure that he was in my dream." She looked back up at him.

Shinji's face suddenly grew very serious. He suddenly was deep in thought.

_What does this mean?_

"I recognized him instantly and it made me feel very uneasy. Also…"

She paused again, and a slight blush tinted her porcelain face.

"I recall… wanting to see you but I didn't. It made me very lonely... This is why I thought I should tell you my dream Shinji…"

She paused again and looked to the floor. Shinji's eyes widened. This was very hard for her to say, and he noted the blush on her face. This was the first time that he had seen her almost stammer, let alone look at the floor. He looked into her eyes.

"It was you who helped me in my synchronization rate test… You made me feel something that I don't know. I don't recognize those feelings."

Shinji knew what to do as he looked at her.

_Rei…_

"Rei, I'm here for you… I wanted to see you at your test and…" he began.

"Shinji listen to me. I feel like something bad is going to happen." She said quickly. She looked scared as she looked at him. Shinji was not sure of what to make of this dream of hers, but he knew one thing for sure.

"Rei, I won't let anything happen to you."

_She needs me… I have to let her know that it will all be okay._

Shinji moved towards her and hugged her tenderly. Her blush returned.

Just than an alarm went off in her room and a red light lit up the scenery at that late night hour.

They broke the hug.

"Shinji that's..."

"An angel." He said, with a shocked expression.

* * *

Red danger signs illuminated countless screens from NERV headquarters. Security personal were monitoring various screens and running around as quickly as possible.

"Angel spotted. I repeat Angel spotted" a voice said over the intercom.

William breathed heavily. He was kneeling on the floor of his cell, exasperation apparent on his face. He got up slowly and moved towards his bunk bed.

"Pilots make their way to the loading dock. I repeat, pilots make their way to the loading dock." Said the same voice.

William lay down on the first-level bunk; his arms crossed behind his head and spread out in both directions.

"So this is how it's all going down…" he said under his breath.

He turned on his side so that he was facing the wall, his legs curled up slightly.

_It's over_. He thought.

_Why bother anymore? We'll all be dead soon.._. _Dead in a world that is beyond our own control by forces that keep us in darkness._

He closed his eyes as if he was trying to sleep.

_Never even got a chance_…_ But what should I expect? It's not like I could trust anyone anyways, and even if I had the chance…_

"I just wanted one chance… that's all I needed." He smiled weakly, a look of utter defeat across his frame.

Suddenly an image flashed across his mind of events long past.

_Everyone important to me is gone anyways…_

A tear began to stream down his face. If a man could feel alone in this world, this was the time. William's body manifested the presence of being utterly alone and helpless.

An image of two eyes looking at him invaded his mind, and heavy breathing could be heard in his mind's eye.

William grit his teeth and opened his eyes. He suddenly sat up in bed and looked forward to the other side of his cell. No one was there.

"I… hate you." He said, in a low murmur.

His face exploded with an unimaginable rage.

"I HAAATE YOU!"

* * *

Shinji, Rei, and Asuka were at the loading dock, all suited up in their plug suits.

_Oh man…_ Shinji thought. He looked at Rei. She had a very serious look upon her face.

_I have to be there for her. _ He thought, with a look of determination. His desire to protect his teammates… the people he held precious to him far surpassed his insecurities and his fear that the world could end with this encounter.

_Even if I die…_

Asuka looked serious as well, but she put on a forced smirk.

"Time to prove myself as the best pilot." She said, putting her hand into a fist.

"My Unit-002 will wreak havoc!" She was masking her own fear with an air of bravado… but to be honest it was welcomed by her teammates in that situation.

"There is an angel 20 miles away from here and approaching fast." Gendo's face appeared on a screen in front of the crew.

Our sensors, with the aid of UN planes in the area picked up signs of the angel heading here on land from the west thirty minutes ago.

Suddenly, everyone heard a giant boom, and everyone instinctively ducked down with their hands over their heads. Gendo brought up an image on the screen for everyone to see. He nodded at Misato.

"You will have the support of various aircraft should you need it. We just launched an N2 bomb at it."

The angel Israfel seemed to stop in its tracks. It screeched a beckoning cry, than it split into two. Suddenly, it appeared to be regenerating. Within a moment, it continued its march towards their location. They merged back into one and all the damage appeared to be gone. The angel looked ever onwards, one goal raging throughout its body…

Various UN craft as well as military standby planes fired missiles at it, to no avail. It simply ignored the constant explosions around it and trudged ever close to Tokyo-3.

"Waste of our taxes…" Ritsuko muttered from under her breath.

To the few unfortunate aviators in who got too close to it, it waved its massive arms and generated a menacing AT field. These planes instantly exploded.

"Dammit get them out of there!" Ritsuko said over the intercom.

"Attention men of NERV and of the United Nations. Please retreat from the angel's radius of damage and stay in the air on standby." Gendo said calmly.

The remaining Sukhoi Su-34's and Bell-Boeing V-22 Ospreys retreated from the immediate vicinity.

"Please proceed to the EVA holding docks. You will be briefed on the plan while you enter the plugs." Gendo said.

The children nodded. Rei looked at Shinji and he met her gaze. They all began to run towards their respective chambers.

"See if you can keep up with me Shinji!" Asuka smirked.

"We'll see if you can keep up with me!" Shinji called back over his shoulder.

That was quite a confident move for Shinji's part. However…

_I've done this how many times… but still._

He had to ignore the quivering that was in his legs as he ran.

In the backgrounds various technicians' voices could be heard over intercoms.

"Freezing process functional."

"Begin the insertion of the plugs… Insertion successful."

As Shinji ran, Gendo's face illuminated on a screen by him on the hallway. Gendo's face constantly shifted to the next monitor next to where Shinji ran so that he could hear the instructions clearly. It was a similar situation for the other pilots as well.

"Rei will be fitted with the Accuracy International Arctic Warfare Magnum. She will be the team sniper. We can take this thing out in one fell swoop if your teamwork is on point."

Shinji nodded, and breathed a breath of relief.

_At least Rei will be in the back_ he thought.

"Shinji and Asuka… you have both been fitted with the AU assault rifle type MM-99. You will each draw the creature towards you, hopefully causing it to split in two…"

By the time Gendo was saying this, Shinji was already at his dummy plug. He swiftly jumped in and took the controls of the iconic Unit-01.

"Begin insertion of LCL." A voice said.

The amber liquid began to fill his EVA unit.

"Commence synchronization with Unit-01."

Shinji concentrated intensely.

"Releasing safety locks 1-15…"

Gendo's face appeared on the screen in his capsule.

"You will be able to neutralize its Absolute Terror field from close range. Then, you must all look for its core. If your weapons prove to be ineffective against this beast, than, of course, your Prog Knife is optimal."

Asuka grinned.

_Up close and personal!_

Rei appeared on Shinji's monitor, and she gazed at him. Shinji gave her an assuring nod.

He looked at Asuka.

"Let's finish this quickly, alright?"

"Just don't get in my way." Asuka teased back.

Shinji looked back at Rei's monitor which was on the right side of his capsule's screen, and she was still gazing at him.

_Oh wow… even in these dire times_ he thought, as he blushed slightly.

"Synchronization of the pilots is successful. Shinji stands at a 93% sync ratio. Asuka stands at 120% sync ratio. Rei stands at 85% sync ratio."

Asuka smirked.

"I knew my rate would be the highest!"

Shinji looked at her. It was evident to everyone that Asuka was a very gifted pilot.

"Are you ready?" Gendo said.

They all nodded in unison, each taking up a third of the screen he was watching.

"Yes sir!"

"Launching EVA Units 00-02" Gendo said.

The three Evangelion units were bolted upwards at a terrifying pace, heading extremely fast towards the surface.

* * *

Israfel arrived at Tokyo-3 and started wreaking havoc on what remained on the barren surface. Many of the useable important buildings had already been taken underground for protection prior to the assault, but there were countless dilapidated buildings left, as well as many inhabited buildings left. Hopefully the people had been evacuated to bunkers by now. It looked like a post-apocalyptic scene already.

The three EVA units arrived at the surface at the EVA shaft number 14. Instantly they assumed a triangular position with Shinji and Asuka at the front, with Rei slightly behind them. They took off at a sprint towards the site where the angel was wreaking destruction.

Israfel was firing off bursts of energy indiscriminately in all directions. It noticed the EVAs approaching and stopped. It looked directly at the group, and did not move for many seconds. The EVAs stopped running as well and squared off in their position, approximately 300 feet away from the angel.

_This is it…_ thought Shinji. He looked at Rei on his screen and she nodded back.

"GO!" he yelled.

The purple Unit-01 and the Red Unit-02 split up in opposite directions, firing their enormous assault rifles at the angels. As they expected, he was unfazed, merely setting up his AT field in the front. Rei's blue Unit-00 was crouched slightly further back and she took the sniper rifle from behind the EVA's back, and locked her sites on the angel.

_Wait for it…_ she thought.

Asuka was so fast in her EVA unit. The angel was firing repeated beam bursts at her, but they lagged behind slightly.

"Is that all you got!?" She yelled.

Asuka nodded at Shinji, and they both began to charge in towards the angel. They both reached the angels AT field and began to apply their own at the max setting to counter it. It was swiftly neutralized, and Asuka and Shinji both began to tear open a giant whole in the middle. This was a window of opportunity.

"Rei!" Shinji said abruptly.

_Now!_ She thought as the pulled the trigger on the massive sniper rifle. Her aiming was superb as she hit the angel's core in the chest dead on. It did not break the giant red orb, but it perhaps put a small crack in it. It was enough to perturb the angel.

She shot three more bursts off at the red orb. Suddenly, the angel in a vicious fury fired a massive beam straight at Rei.

_Rei!_ Shinji thought.

Rei used evasive maneuvers and dove to the left, completing a perfect summersault, barely missing the blast.

Now it was Shinji and Asuka's turn.

They both entered into the crumbling AT field of the angel. This prompted the angel to split into two, as they anticipated.

Shinji fired a few bursts at his target, but it was ineffective.

_I thought so._

He did was Asuka had already done. He pitched his rifle and drew his Progressive Knife.

Asuka lunged at the Alpha half with a brilliant spinning kick. Alpha latched onto her foot, but it went flying to the ground.

Shinji let Beta initiate the first attack. Beta sought to grab him, but he had blocked it with his arms. He was face to face looking at the distorted angel's mask, his prog knife vibrating in his right hand and letting off an energy signature.

"Shinji!" he heard Rei call. She began to run towards the group

Shinji twisted his body, allowing the angel to twist with him. Then he elbowed the creature in the side and tackled it to the ground.

Alpha was trying to get Asuka on the ground, but to no success. She leaned down and punched him square in the face, blood spurting out. Suddenly, the angel attempted to let out an energy blast directly onto EVA-02 at point blank range. Asuka instinctively raised her AT field to the max. All that came of the blast is that she was blown back slightly. In fact, it was blocked so well that the blast mostly damaged Alpha!

"Is this all?" Asuka said with a smirk. She than positioned her AT field from her hands parallel to the ground in an attempt to smother the downed clone into submission.

By now Shinji raised his knife to stab Beta. At this point, they both merged back into the gigantic Israfel.

"NOW!" Shinji yelled.

The angel lunged at Shinji with his right arm, but he kneeled to dodge it, as well as raising his Prog Knife to slice off its limb. After this, Rei was finally there with the group, her Prog knife drawn as well.

"End it here!" They heard Misato yell over the intercom.

In a three pronged attack, the EVAs simultaneously hit the angel's exposed core with all of their Progressive Knives.

The Eva's mask twisted and distorted, and it gave out an ominous screech.

"OOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Than it exploded, sending its gory remains flying into Tokyo-3. The three pilots stood there, speechless. They were all minimally damaged by its final explosion, but not by much since their AT fields had combined together and were all redirecting the blast. They were all covered in gore though. A massive cross of pure energy dotted the night skyline, indicating the death of an angel.

Shinji looked at Rei on his screen, to see that she was already looking at him. He couldn't help but smile.

"Is that it!" Asuka called out to the heavens, a look of triumph evident on her face.

"Shinji, I was surprised that you were able to keep up with me." Asuka smirked in a cocky way.

Shinji smiled back.

"I can't believe that worked…" he said.

_Yes… together we can beat anything_.

He looked at Rei again

_I said I would protect you_.

* * *

At NERV, everyone was taking a huge breath of relief. It looked like Tokyo-3 would live to see another day.

"Well done!" Misato exclaimed, full of energy.

_They were… flawless out there_ she thought and smiled.

Suddenly another alarm went off in NERV.

"Sir… SIR! You're going to want to see this!" a flustered technician said.

Gendo's eyes widened.

_IT CAN'T BE!_

There were 4 blue dots heading towards Tokyo-3 as they spoke.

Phones began ringing from UN officials who monitored areas of the world all at once.

Also, several of NERV's satellite feeds in space began to be lost, one after the other, but not before revealing an enormous orange eye in the sky. This fifth blue dot was also heading towards Tokyo-3.

"My God…" Gendo said.

"We are doomed."

One of the things that NERV had banked on was the fact that all angels before had attacked one by one over a long period of time. However, for some reason there appeared to be many angels coming in unison.

_This is the end…_

Gendo gave a transmission to the three children in their EVA units.

"Unfortunately… you are not done yet."

Shinji's previous rejoicing suddenly stiffened, and his face grew serious again.

"Listen… there are five angels approaching Tokyo-3 as we speak… and one of them is hurling down to earth from space."

Shinji donned a look of horror.

_WHAT?_

"How… How can this be?" He said.

No-one answered because they were too stunned. The group had gone from the ultimate high of knowing that they had saved the world to realizing that their impending doom was at hand.

Shinji looked at Rei, and she trembled visibly on the screen.

_NO…._ Shinji thought.

"NO." he said.

"I refuse this… we will live to see another day."

"Shinji…" Rei said. Asuka looked at Shinji and for once she looked completely serious, eager to hear him out.

"I will protect you!"

The three EVA units stood back to back, with Progressive knifes drawn and awaited their fate. The silence was deafening to all of them.

_This is it…_ Gendo thought as he sank into his chair.

_Wait…_ Gendo's eyes widened. There was another option.

"Send for William and ready Unit-04!"

Everyone was stunned at the declaration.

_Can he be serious!?_ Thought Ritsuko.

The face of Commander Michaels came up on the screen.

"Sir… I don't think that is a good idea." He said with a very serious tone.

"We are out of options." Gendo said hurriedly.

"Gendo, we are not sure what would happen if he was allowed inside an EVA unit. Also, he is as likely to destroy us all in this base as he is to fight against the angels."

"That is a risk that we must take." He said.

As good as the teamwork of the EVA pilots had been… it was against one angel. The EVAs would be sorely outnumbered. Even as powerful as Unit-01 had been revealed to be in times of dire need… destruction seemed imminent. This literally could be the end of the world.

_If this kid's as good as he sounds…_ he thought. The prospects sounded ludicrous. They were about to let a convict pilot and EVA unit because they had no other option. Who was to say that he didn't turn on all of them or run off, because obviously a prisoner would see this as a chance to get even.

_We are out of options! They need another EVA unit_

Even with four EVA units the tides were extremely against them… Ritsuko calculated that assuming everything went well with William (which was an enormous leap of faith) they had about a 19% chance of survival.

* * *

William sat on his bunk, looking at the floor as he had been for some time now. The alarms had started again, but he didn't care.

_So it ends…_ he thought.

Suddenly Commander Michaels appeared in front of his cell with Misato and Ritsuko.

"Son we need you… you will be piloting today."

William stared at Michaels in the eyes long and hard, but suddenly his eyes widened.

"I… get to pilot?"

_I… have a chance._

Suddenly all vigor returned to his previously defeated corpse.

"William… our pilots need your help." said Misato.

"I don't know if you trust us but… we need you so… please help us. If you don't… we will all die."

William began to grin slightly, even though he was still glaring daggers at Michaels. This made the ladies feel uneasy… but there were more impending things to feel uneasy about at the moment.

Misato unlocked his cell with a cardkey and led him out. The procession began to head towards the EVA holding docks.

"Hurry, time is of the essence." She said, as she un-cuffed him.

William felt his wrists, and began to move his arms around for the first time. He looked back at Michaels and made fists with his hands. William had a very angry look on his face. However he was trembling slightly… as if with excitement.

The technicians readied the brown EVA Unit-04.

There was no time to change as the angels would make contact in mere minutes. Therefore, he walked in his orange jumpsuit all the way to EVA Unit-04. Everyone was watching him, and everyone felt nervous about this.

"Beginning activation sequence." A technician proclaimed.

"Sir… are you sure about this?" Ritsuko said on a private line with the commander.

"What choice do we have?" Gendo remarked. Hopefully this would even the odds if not by a bit.

"Inserting the entry-plug." A technician off to the side said. William approached EVA Unit-04. He looked extremely serious… and angry.

Technicians were giving him instructions, but he did not respond at all. He simply grabbed the controls in the plug and waited.

"Now filling the plug with LCL."

Gendo Ikari established a link with William on the plug's screen.

"Are you ready for this?" he said.

_If his synchronization rates are as high as they say for him… I can't wait to see_ Gendo thought, with some fascination.

William didn't answer him. Instead, he looked directly at Commander Michaels, dead in his eyes, who was standing behind Gendo.

"Sir…" Michaels said, who looked a tad bit nervous.

"I really don't think we should allow this."

Gendo ignored him, curious to see the young man's sync rates.

He narrowed his brow in a questioning remark.

"Sir… his synchronization rates are barely at 20%"

_WHAT? But they said it was…_

Gendo's eyes widened. It appeared that the boy had a plan. He wasn't even trying to establish a mental link, but he kept looking at Michaels, almost… menacingly.

"I thought he had great rates." He said to Michaels.

Michaels said nothing, but looked back at William.

"What will you do William?" Michaels said.

_There's no time for this…_ Gendo thought. Even though his synchronization rates were abysmally poor, he had to join the fight. Hell, it had to do everything in his power to support the other pilots, even if this was a huge let down.

_He won't even be able to pilot with those rates_.

"Releasing the safety locks… EVA Unit-04 launching."

At that moment, Gendo established William's link to the other pilots and linked them to Unit-04 as well.

"We are bringing out… reinforcements." Gendo said cooly.

Shinji's eyes widened.

_They're letting him pilot!?_ Suddenly, he saw the blue beeping dots on his mini-map.

_We're going to need all the help we can get…_ he thought. He nodded at his father.

Rei and Asuka looked at William on their screens.

_Damn… they're letting prison boy pilot!_ thought Asuka.

_I just hope he doesn't try to kill us_. She thought.

_Well, maybe he can be useful._ She smirked.

William, however, paid no heed to any of his fellow pilots. He just stared intently at Commander Michaels on the camera.

William finally reached the surface, and just stood there.

"Angels approaching sir!" Maya said to the commander hurriedly.

The EVAs readied themselves… but Unit-04 just stood there.

William felt a presence tugging at his mind.

He smirked.

"…I'm tired of you…" He said under his breath. Everyone on the cameras watched in fascination.

_You want to play hero?_ A voice said behind him.

Suddenly, thick white and blue arms appeared on William's arms, and a grotesque figure who looked to be 1 ½ times the size of a human appeared hunched over the pilot. Its long tongue licked William across the face. There was something in the cockpit with him!

William's eyes widened, but he retained his look of anger.

"I'M TIRED OF YOU!" He yelled. William's right hand went to an emergency kit that was near the controllers and took out his combat knife. He got up and out of his seat, turning around and sending the synchronization rate to 0%. Unit-04 stood still.

The creature grinned at him with its large menacing mouth and eyes.

_I Can't wait… I can't wait!_ It said in a hideous voice.

* * *

Authors Note: Well, I finally did an EVA fight four chapters in…and it felt good! These chapters just seem to get longer and longer. Thank you all for reading up to this point. Feel free to review or critique what you think of this story. :)


	5. The Long Night

_I've… watched you all this time… Waiting…_ the hideous creatures said with anticipation in its voice. It's mouth watered.

…_Hungering…_ Its mouth widened.

_I CAN'T… I CAN'T WAIT ANYMORE!_ It shrieked.

"Oh God! It's happening!" Michaels yelled over the intercom, looking visibly terrified. He was holding his head with both hands and his eyes widened to extreme levels.

Gendo had been watching the situation but was too shocked by the insidious turn of events to speak. No one could speak.

Just then, a blue light appeared on the monitor in front of Gendo.

"Sir…" Maya said, visibly shaking. "We have detected another life-form, code blue."

Gendo stared at the location of this dot… It was right in the midst of EVA Unit-04… in the entry plug.

He took off his glasses and held them in his right hand.

…_It can't be…_

"Michaels… what is this!? Where did an angel come from!?" He yelled at the American.

"Sir…" he began, displaying some hesitation.

"These… 'things'… always seem to be drawn to him. Something like this has happened before. I knew we should never have let him near an EVA! We don't even know if this kid is human, he's a freak! We are all doomed." He said, as he slumped to the ground.

Gendo joined with the whole staff, as well as the petrified EVA pilots in beholding a grisly spectacle: Unit 04's Entry Plug quickly became a hellish scene of blood and gore.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" William yelled, as he lunged at the angelic being.

William slashed with his knife several times at the beast's white chest. However, it barely left a scratch on the angeloid's incredibly tough skin.

_No…_ William thought, as an atmosphere of doom began to settle on the fringes of the pilot's mind.

He lifted his left hand to parry any incoming attack and he lunged against straight at the fiend's gut. It penetrated but a half-inch. A sickly blue-black liquid oozed out of the shallow wound.

_I thought… if I only had one more chance…_.

The being grinned and let out its long, gnarled tongue. Suddenly, it slammed its right hand around William's neck. His hand and arm began to flow around his neck, as if his skin itself had viscous properties and was able to morph. William's head was completely surrounded by this being's hand.

_Let's begin shall we?_

It hurled William across the whole length of the entry unit, until he hit the other side. His combat knife went flying when he slammed into the wall of the entry plug. William choked up some blood from the vicious assault, and he floated in the LCL, beginning to realize his plight.

_DAMMIT!_ He thought.

Menacingly, the creature came over to William, trembling with bliss and excitement.

_YES…YES…YES_.

"William!" Shinji yelled. He watched the situation in horror, as well as the other EVA pilots.

"Scheiße…" Asuka muttered in horror, reverting to her native tongue.

Rei's eyes widened at the scene unfolding before her on the monitor.

They all beheld the creature approach William.

William readied himself with a martial arts stance. His right arm was slightly higher in front of his face, while his left was lower at chest-height. He began a barrage of assaults on the beast. He lunged at its horrifying head. This barely caused it to move. The angel lunged back at him. He blocked it just in time with his left arm… if block can be a fair term. It was more like he smashed him into the wall with his left arm, and had his meager attempt at blocking not been up in time, he may have been passed out by now.

William began to fight on sheer instincts. He tried to jockey for position in the narrow entry plug.

_This is impossible!_ He thought.

The angel was taking up almost the whole width of the plug, trapping him on one side. He instantly turned upside down in the amber liquid and lunged for its legs. The angel cackled with a very disturbing sound. It blocked his punch as if there was no strength to it, and used its other hand to ram William's head into the side of the entry plug.

_I guess it really is all over…_ William thought through much anguish.

"William's vital signs are decreasing…" Maya barely was able to say, trying to stiffen the desire to throw up.

Everyone saw the dire situation… William was bleeding profusely now, mixed with some of the angel's blood. It was becoming difficult to see into the cockpit since it was distributing throughout the LCL. Everyone saw a tangled mess of gore, and the outline of the angel ramming William into the side again and again… and this time biting him in the shoulder with its razor sharp teeth.

"AHHHHHHH!" William yelled. Blood went everywhere.

Shinji watched the horror unfolding on his monitor with wide eyes.

"Isn't… there something we can do!?" he muttered.

Unit-01 began to dash towards the still-standing EVA Unit-04, extending his arm in haste.

_If I can reach that entry plug…_

"Angels visible in Tokyo-3!" Maya yelled.

"Shinji!" Gendo called over the intercom.

"Forget about William! It was a failed experiment! Just count Unit-04 as out of commission. Focus on your task at hand… If not the world will end!"

Unit-01's arm was still extended, but he slowly returned to the trilateral formation.

Shinji looked to his co-pilots and they nodded. They could still hear the screams of the young man over the intercoms.

_We're out of time…They're here…_ Shinji thought.

He clutched his Prog Knife.

* * *

Time seemed to stand still for Shinji Ikari at that moment. There were a few brief seconds of calm before the inevitable storm.

"Listen guys…" he heard Misato say over the intercom.

A terrifying angel moved towards their position from the northeast side of the city, coming from the sea. It was deathly tall with lances for legs and a very pointy geometry. With each step that it took it had frozen the water via AT fields over the ocean. Now, each step it took caused a blast wave to pummel buildings into the ground.

"Whatever you do…" tears were streaming down her face at this point.

An ominous spider moved in towards their position from the southwest. Its legs were taller than most buildings. It was fast-approaching via land. It seemed to have countless eyes on its center frame that oozed a venomous looking substance. This substance was causing holes to open up in the earth.

"You have to know…"

A massive form emerged from deep within the ground near Tokyo-3's northwestern corner. It was evident that this beast was accustomed to high temperatures, seeing as he was still partially covered in magma. He was a reddish-green color all over, containing enormous eyes and a golem-like figure. Molten lava was dripping from its mouth and it inched close towards the group.

"You made us proud…"

From the southeast quadrant of the city, a being that was all too familiar to the group began to make its way towards them. In fact, this angel looked too similar to the third angel, Sachiel, for comfort. With its menacing humanoid frame, it lurked ever closer in what appeared to be a four-pronged attack.

"You don't have to worry… Just give it your best. That's all we can ask of you. Whatever the outcome may be… I'm happy to have spent this time together." Misato gave a weak smile amidst the flowing tears.

_Misato…_ Shinji thought.

"I won't let it end here… not like this." He said with an air of defiance. After all, he had to appear confident for his fellow pilots, and especially for the lady with crimson eyes.

At this moment, the gigantic angel Sahaquiel loomed ever closer to the earth, accelerating constantly at a dangerous rate. The enormous orange angel contained a menacing all-seeing eye that took up most of its center. This eye was focused on a target and was overclouded with unbridled rage and a desire to end everything on this cursed planet.

The screams stopped coming from Unit-04 at this point, and an eerie silence emanated from the microphone... save the muffled sound of what could be described as chewing.

Instantly a wave of tactical decisions flooded Shinji's mind.

_Do we try and take them out one by one?_

_If so who is their weakest link?_

_But they will surround us on all sides… maybe we have to all engage one… but then…_

"Shinji." Gendo said. There seemed to be an absence of the previous spontaneous emotion that captured the usually stoic commander.

"Use your discretion. Good luck."

Shinji looked at Asuka on the monitor.

"Asuka, we should take them out one by one, that way…"

"Shinji." Asuka began.

"I'll take the front. After all, I have to show why I am the best pilot." She smirked.

There was no time to argue with her. He nodded.

"Alright… So who do we go for first?"

That question was quickly being answered by the speed of one of the angels. The tall angel with jagged points was approaching their position rapidly.

"Alright. Let's go!"

"Shinji, I will join you momentarily." Rei said, as she sprinted off at a 90 degree angle in another direction.

"Rei!" Shinji yelled.

"Misato, I'm going for Cache-5." Rei said over the microphone.

"Right! It's still operational. You'll make it!" Misato said as she grabbed the microphone.

After sprinting a short distance to the southeast and leaping a crater, she punched a giant steel-framed door, revealing a new Accuracy International Arctic Warfare Sniper Rifle. She armed herself and rushed towards the other pilots. Rei had an excellent logistical knowledge of Tokyo-3 and she knew where every weapons cache was.

_I won't let you down…_ she thought.

Rei had no time to settle in a spot to aim at her targets. She assumed a run-and-gun stance, and instantly fired several bursts towards the incoming angel's topside. The AT field vaporized the giant rounds instantly, but it was enough to get the angel's attention. Its pointed mask looked towards her as opposed to the two sprinting EVA's below it.

Shinji saw her plan and was revitalized.

"Asuka now!"

Asuka took this window of opportunity since the angel was focusing its' Absolute Terror field higher up near the head. Unit-02 was a good distance in front of Unit-01. She instantly neutralized the pointed angel's AT field, and charged inside its area of affect.

_It's so tall_ she mused in irritation. Asuka grit her teeth.

The angel seemed to hover slightly above the earth, and only its pointed legs touched the ground, which were very thin. The unusual shape of this angel as well as the unnaturally long limbs and angles of attachment would make this difficult.

Asuka gracefully leapt onto the angel's left leg. She held on part ways up the leg, unsure if she should climb up or begin slicing at the towering behemoth. She looked towards Unit-01.

"Asuka! Your hand!"

Shinji's true tenacity was starting to show through. It was times like these that really mattered where Shinji's ferociousness would actually be seen. Asuka saw what appeared to be the angel's core slightly below the head. Unit-02 lowered its right hand. Unit-01 was suddenly airborne as it leapt off the ground.

Asuka looked at him, stunned as he grabbed her hand to pull himself up even higher, pausing in mid-air to position his two legs on the inner side of the angel's gigantic leg. He then used this as a springboard to perform a second jump with a single goal in mind…

Asuka watched him, her eyes wide with fascination at the brilliant maneuver.

_Shinji… is this really you?_

_I'll end this with one strike!_ Shinji thought quickly.

Unit-01 was lunging in the air right towards the angel's exposed core. By now, both hands were on the Progressive Knife… with the intent of ending the angel in one fell strike.

However, just as Unit-01 was about to land the fatal blow… the angel's mask looked at it. Instantly, a vast AT field materialized at Shinji's position, causing him to freeze in mid-air and feel an extreme pressure on the EVA.

_Shit!_ He thought.

He began to fall, but not before he burst his Absolute Terror field in a wide radius in front of him, hoping to get one strike at that core. However, several deadly black spikes came shooting at him, several latching onto Unit-01. At this point he began to plummet, realizing that he had missed his chance... He looked up at the exposed core, constantly getting out of his grasp.

"Shinji!" Asuka yelled, barely able to hang on herself.

Shinji hit the earth with a resounding thud. His head was spinning with vibrations from the AT Field's shock blast. Time seemed to stand still for a moment, and he briefly could not hear his fellow pilots.

"Shinji, they're closing in on your position!" Rei yelled.

Rei instantly went into a protective mode.

_I'll be bait…_ she thought.

Unit-00 began firing rounds indiscriminately at the other angels, hoping to get their attention. She ran to the west in a wide arc, hoping to get them to follow her. The other angel's incinerated the rounds without the slightest ounce of hardship, but they would not turn and follow Rei. They paid Unit-00 no heed.

Shinji looked up from his position on the ground, only to see countless eyes oozing liquid from a large spider. It was a mere hundred feet away from him. Instantly a terrifying howl was heard from a direction to his right.

"Shinji!" Rei screamed.

Suddenly, a huge beam of energy appearing to have a magma substance landed right next to Unit-01, causing a massive crater to open up in the earth. It sent Shinji's EVA flying into the air and crashing into a building. He landed on the street after doing a few rolls on the ground. Shinji grit his teeth in pain. The menacing creature from whence the blast came was staring intently at Unit-01, magma seeping from its mouth. Also, the angel who was reminiscent of the third angel was close by, walking every closer towards Unit-01.

_It's over…_ the thought went through his mind.

_We couldn't take down a single angel..._ The truth of this statement was hitting him hard right now. They had not defeated a single angel of the four, let alone the ominous fifth angel that was approaching their position. Perhaps their time had come… all the angels were moving in on their position for a final push.

Shinji noticed that his internal battery had been triggered. The chord had been blown away by the explosion. The time on his screen said 4: 45.

Rei froze in place.

"No…" she said, a tears welling in her eyes.

Unit-00 began to run towards Shinji, regardless of the implicit perils of the action. One person was on her mind…

_No…_ Shinji thought, as he began to raise his downed EVA Unit-01.

_I… don't accept this fate._

Rei finally reached him, and Unit-00 bent over to help Unit-01 up.

By now they were completely surrounded.

"Shinji, I…" Rei began, but she was interrupted.

"Rei… It's been an honor protecting everyone. But hold that thought. We'll live to fight another day." Shinji said, as he smirked.

_It's been an honor Rei…_ he thought. Shinji couldn't bear the thought of visibly losing hope in front of the people he cared about. The thought of causing them pain from his own fear… It was too much to show any sign of hesitation. Now was the time… it was his time to be strong.

Rei blushed over the video feed. He looked remarkably cool and collected, brimming with confidence and determination.

_Shinji…_ Asuka thought, rage boiling in her veins. She looked up at the monstrous creature who she was still hanging from. It had moved its core higher up, way out of her reach.

_And here I am…_

"I will…" she began, feeling a deep anger and tears rising from her eyes.

"Bring you down!"

Unit-02, using all its strength, began to use its arms and tear the gigantic leg apart. She successfully dislocated the leg, and the behemoth began to lose its balance. It attempted to force an AT field out of the other leg to remain standing, but it began to fall. Asuka leaped at the last moment, landing close to the group on her feet. The angel landed close to the group of angels with a huge thud, but it was still alive. Unit-02 ran to Rei and Shinji's position.

"Baka." Asuka said, however her face full of emotion was betraying her true feelings at the moment.

Shinji looked at Rei and Asuka and smiled.

"Thank you…" he said.

The angels were practically on them at this point.

Shinji ran towards the angel that looked like Sachiel.

"Wait… Shinji." Asuka began.

_SHINJI!_ Rei thought, suddenly feeling panic, as if that thank you was actually a goodbye.

Unit-01 entered the angel's Absolute Terror field and lunged with his Progressive Knife. However, the angel intercepted the attack and they both locked hands.

_So it ends…_ he thought, albeit sadly.

Asuka witnessed the heroic act.

_Not like this… not without a fight_ she thought.

Asuka lunged at the horrific spider being, who looked at her with all its eyes. Unit-02 leapt and with a diving kick, entered into the spider's frame. However, she did not hit the core. She tried moving around, only to realize that she was stuck partly inside an angel. Instead, it started applying all of its acid onto Unit-02, even letting itself get singed.

"Scheiße..." Asuka murmured.

She looked to her right to notice a giant reddish beam forming from the magma being. Her eyes widened. She instinctively forced her AT field in that direction and covered her frame with her hands. The resounding explosion hit her with full force, as well as the spider angel. Apparently, the angels lacked a human sense of camaraderie and weren't too concerned with damaging each other as long as it meant achieving their goal.

Waves of pain crept over Asuka and she coughed up blood.

_Dammit! _She thought.

Rei, who had been watching Shinji this whole time, just noticed what had transpired with Asuka. Rei saw the magma beast that was responsible. Unit-00 readied the Progressive knife and charged at it head on. It looked at her and began charging up another vicious attack.

Shinji was struggling with his angel. It was a contest of strength. However the angel had another advantage… It was constantly firing beams from its elbow that went through its arms and into Shinji's hands. He was getting major burns on his arms, and each shock blast sent waves of pain through his frame. However, he clenched the angel's hands tightly, his true resolve being tested. He took a step forward.

Rei dodged the massive explosion by leaping to the right. Unit-00 continued its charge towards the grotesque angel. She was now within striking range. However, the angel swung its massive right arm right at her. She brought her arms up to block the punch, however the force behind the strike was astonishing. She was instantly sent to the ground. Rei winced in pain.

"Rei!" Shinji yelled in desperation.

Rei looked up to see it readying another blast. It seemed like their whole world was coming down around them… All of the pilots were in dire situations. All of the angels closed in on them, ready to end their existence.

Meanwhile, a massive object loomed ever-closer to Tokyo-3. Everyone noticed that the night suddenly got darker…

_Is this really… the end?_

* * *

All the NERV personal in the Geofront were feeling the massive shockwaves from the ensuing fight.

"The 22nd line of defense has been breached." Maya said hurriedly. The incessant pounding on the surface sent debris falling into the Geofront. Also, a brown acidic substance was seeping past the defense lines, as well as the Magma blasts which constantly brought the angels closer to the bottom.

There was no response.

"Sir?" she asked, only to look behind him and notice that the Commander was gone.

Gendo Ikari had descended to the lower chambers of NERV along with Fuyutsuki. He now stood in front of a giant tube filled with amber liquid, looking at a nude girl with Crimson eyes. Her eyes seemed to glimmer. He pressed a button and the door slid open.

"Gendo are you sure…" Fuyutsuki began.

"We are out of time… so it has come to this…" Gendo said.

* * *

It was dark... very dark. Visions flashed across the recesses of his mind. He was running with someone on a deserted highway beneath a night sky filled with stars. However, this person was running ahead of him. It was becoming hard to keep up.

"Wait…" he called.

"Don't leave me."

The person turned to look around, and suddenly vanished out of reach.

Suddenly, a voice called his mind…

_William._

William awoke. He was floating in LCL inside of the entry plug. He floated for several seconds in mid-air recalling the events that had flashed across his mind.

"Why did you leave?" he said to no-one in particular.

_What good am I?_ He thought. He clenched his mouth and tears began to form in his eyes.

_I'm still here…_ he mused, feeling an incredible loneliness.

He noticed that the angelic being was hunched over him and that he was bleeding profusely from his shoulder. William was partially wrapped up in a blue, gelatinous substance. The being appeared to be applying the substance all across his body. It noticed that he was awake.

_More?... It's time for more! NO MORE WAITING!_ It said with trembling excitement.

William looked the beast dead in the eyes, its enormous tongue flailing about and its razor sharp, elongated teeth showing from a dastardly grin.

"You…" William spoke. He began to tear off the gelatinous substance from his body.

_It would be a sin…_ he thought, clenching his fists.

"YOU…" By now he was free of his cocoon and he pressed onto the side of the entry plug.

_To waste this chance…_

"YOU TOOK EVERYTHING FROM ME!"

Memories of the person in his dream clouded his mind.

_How could I live with myself knowing that I did nothing when you…_

William was trembling with fury. The angeloid being noticed this and could barely contain itself.

_Yes… YES… I HUNGER… I HUNGER…_

William had an extremely focused look on his face. He instantly charged the beast by throwing his whole weight at it with a roundhouse kick. It was surprised by the intensity of the attack, as it sent the angel flying back slightly in the LCL.

William now began to punch the beast's stomach in successive strike. Each strike did not do much visible damage and it felt like he was punching a brick wall. In fact, his knuckles were beginning to bleed from the damage to his hands. However, he was too focused on his goal to worry himself with physical pain.

"JUST DIE!" he yelled, as he continued to lunge at the angel. At this point, he wasn't thinking about this own life.

The angelic being was taken aback by the ferocity of the attacks, and they were now at the opposite end of the entry plug.

The angel let out a ferocious howl and punched at William's stomach, sending him flying back the direction from whence he came. He hit the wall. He noticed his combat knife floating in the corner and he picked it up.

_Yes… YES!_ It howled.

William locked eyes with the angelic being and floated his way slowly.

"You want to eat me?" he said.

"YOU SEE ME AS FOOD!?"

The angel opened its mouth in anticipation.

William floated to within an inch of the creature, and they both stared at each other.

After a few seconds, William jabbed the knife into the beast's neck, causing its blood to flow.

_YOU!_ It said, as it prepared to bite William's exposed flesh. However, William acted first.

He bit the exposed inner flesh of the angelic being with his own teeth! Rage clouded his mind, as blood began spurting from the wound and onto him. He began to chew on the angel's flesh with a look of anger clouding his judgment. He then used his hands to tear at the wound and make it larger.

The angel was too stunned by the insane action. His meal was literally biting into his own flesh! It felt… pain. It shrieked and pointed his head downwards, intending to bite into his head. However, William took the bite with his left arm. He was now a good several inches into the beast's flesh, a bluish-black blood spewing out into his face.

"AHHHHHHH!" William yelled.

William shoved his right arm as far as it would go in the wound until he felt something solid and clenched it tightly. He didn't care about the pain in his left arm… nothing mattered at the moment. He heaved with all of his might, and that object began to move upwards. William's face came up, with a chunk of the angel's flesh in his mouth, and his right arm holding something from the wound.

_NOOOOOOOOO!_ The angeloid being howled.

The angel literally exploded at that moment. Organs, end trails, blood EVERYTHING! It spewed all across the entry plug and all over William. William was thrown back to a side of the plug with the violent explosion. He floated for several seconds, unsure if that had really transpired. In his right hand, he held the remains of the angel's core.

_I… did it?_ He thought.

"I… have a chance."

William could not see anything in that cockpit, and the previously amber colored liquid was now a mess of blue, black, and red gore. But that didn't matter…

_I have a chance…_

William was so thankful in that realization. Even if he was going to die… all was not lost.

He sat back down at the controls. He saw that the other pilots were in trouble from their video feed that was registering on his screen.

_I have a chance… to defeat angels._

William, who was a mess of gore, grinned slightly and shook all over his body.

With wide eyes, he began synchronization with the EVA.

* * *

Everyone heard the yells coming from Unit-04 over the microphone.

"William?" Misato said, dumbstruck.

Rei, Shinji, and Asuka all heard the yells at the same time in disbelief. All that was registering on their screens was a blue-black tangled mess of gore inside of Unit-04s cockpit, however the slight outline of someone could be seen sitting there.

_William…? _Shinji thought.

"Gendo!" Maya yelled with the utmost hast.

"Unit-04 has activated."

Gendo froze in place. He heard the declaration over the intercom. He turned towards the wall of the inner chamber and opened up a direct video link to the battle station of NERV.

_How can this…?_ He thought. A look of fascination was written upon his face.

He also established a direct connection with Unit-04, and the sight was indeed grizzly. He could faintly see the outline of William sitting, but the cockpit had become a tangled mess of gore.

"THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE!" Ritsuko exclaimed as she monitored Unit-04s synchronization rates.

"William has a 300% sync ratio!"

Gendo stared at the monitor.

_That… is unheard of_.

At those rates, any movements or harm done could theoretically tear off a person's limbs since the Evangelion unit would mimic them exactly.

Ritsuko stared at the screen with wide eyes.

"Sir…" she began.

* * *

William clenched his fist; Unit-04 did the same.

William looked at the NERV screen, straight at Commander Michaels. Michaels looked back with a serious look on his face and said nothing.

_I have a chance…_

That thought was… so amazing, so unbelievable in his mind.

_I have a chance…_

He reached his right arm down to his lower back side.

_I can't run with this._ He grinned, displaying a look of excitement mixed with anger.

Unit-04 sliced through its own power cable, instantly triggering the five minute countdown.

"Is he insane!?" Ritsuko exclaimed.

5:00…4:59…4:58… the timer was ticking down.

_Right…_ he thought.

Unit-04 took off in a sprint towards the battlefield. The speed by which Unit-04 ran across the battlefield was terrifying.

_It's running almost twice as fast as Unit-02!_ Thought Misato.

A resounding whoosh in the wind followed Unit-04 on its sprint. It leapt several craters on the way. Everyone at NERV HQ watched Unit-04 run in fascination. It was the fastest anyone had ever seen an EVA move.

"William!" Misato called over the intercom.

"Please, you must save your teammates!"

William's face showed an insane intensity at the moment, as he was locked onto the swiftly approaching battlefield. He saw Misato's face, but he muted the audio from NERV-HQ and did not respond to her plea at all.

_One more chance…_ he thought.

"He just muted us…" Misato said.

"God what's he going to do!?"

"William…" Michaels muttered under his breath, his eyes glued to the monitor.

Shinji, was currently tied up in an epic struggle of life and death. To make matters worse, the pointed angel who had fallen over was assaulting his back side as well with a vicious AT field.

Suddenly, he noticed Unit-04 approaching on the video screen.

"William!" he said.

Shinji felt something… It was as if his prayers had been answered. Maybe his bravado would really be realized… maybe he would live to see his comrades another day. By now, Unit-01 was on his knees, and the angel still held him in his deathly grip. He had been losing the struggle, and his arms were on fire. Also, his back felt like it was burning from the constantly resounding AT field. He was literally being suffocated.

"You have to…"

William ignored his teammates' words.

_This is for you…_ William thought as he grit his teeth and sheer ferociousness lined his eyes. The person from his vision was resounding clear in his mind.

He ran right by the downed Unit-00. Rei looked on her video screen at the outline of William under all that gore. Her eyes widened. William looked at his target.

The magma angel sent forth a shockwave towards Unit-04.

Unit-04 kept up its quick pace and leapt straight over the beam of magma. It seemed like he didn't even need to neutralize the monstrous angel's AT field. He came crashing down on top of the magma angel with tremendous rage in a roundhouse kick. The angel stuttered back slightly. The angel lunged at William, but he rolled to the side. The behemoth was much larger than an EVA unit, but William's furious assault continued. Unit-04 assumed a martial-arts stance as he proceeded to lunge at the larger angel, and finally knee it in the side. The angel fell to the ground.

Everyone watched in amazement.

"Those movements…" said Misato.

"Krav Maga." Ritsuko said.

"It seems this one is a fighter."

William saw the situation that Shinji was in. Unit-04 instantly leapt to the right towards Shinji's position.

3:48… 3:47… 3:46. The timer kept ticking.

Unit-04 was airborne performing a spinning kick. The angel who was in the struggle with Shinji was kicked on its upper body, instantly causing it to let go of Shinji and stutter to the side. Unit-04 threw several punches at it. However, by now the reddish-green angel was back on its feet and it was charging towards his position. William performed a low kick to the angel that was reminiscent of Sachiel, and turned to meet the magma angel. He turned in time and launched his full body at the incoming angel.

Rei and Shinji watched in amazement as Unit-04 was literally taking on two angels at once.

"IS THIS IT!?" William yelled.

He had overpowered the magma angel. After meeting it in the middle, he started pushing and forcing it to back step, eventually tackling the beast. Unit-04 was lying over its body, sending punch after punch onto the angel's frame.

"GET UP!"

Unit-04 arose. In his anger, he grabbed the angel by the leg and used his might to attempt and throw the angel.

"William!" Shinji yelled. He took a step towards Unit-04, but winced in pain and was forced to kneel.

_DAMMIT!_ He thought.

Unit-04 gracefully performed a back flip, and in mid-air unsheathed his Progressive Knife in time to meet the Sachiel-reminiscent angel who had been running towards Unit-04 to try and hit him from behind. William slashed at the angel and took off its arm.

Suddenly, a two-pronged attack occurred. Unit-04 became trapped by the AT field of the downed pointed angel, who also shot out several exploding bolts at him. He rolled to the side and performed a back flip to dodge them. However, when he turned around he was hit directly by the magma angel's burst.

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!" William yelled. Blood burst from his pores from the front side of his body.

Unit-04 was hurled to the ground.

2:31… 2:30… 2:29…

William looked at the angels with a rage-contorted face. He arose slowly, looking towards the angel who had been wrestling with Shinji.

The angel began to charge towards him. It let out a terrifying Howl.

_OOOAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!_

Unit-04 began in a walk, followed by a run. William leapt high into the sky and turned around 360 degrees in the air, ramming the knife straight into the angel's core. Instantly, it exploded and a massive purple cross of pure energy that loomed across the sky took its place.

William emerged from the explosion, debris flying everywhere across the desolate remains of Tokyo-3. Next, he had his sights on the magma angel.

_Incredible…_ thought Shinji, who stood there speechless.

Suddenly, Shinji noticed that Asuka needed assistance on his video feed.

"Shinji!" Rei said, motioning towards Asuka.

Rei took this opportunity to help out Asuka in her predicament.

"I don't need help you doll!" Asuka yelled.

_DAMMIT!_ She seethed. The corrosive acid had almost shut down her EVA Unit completely, and she could barely move its arm.

Asuka and Rei both lunged at the spider angel, Matarael with their Prog knives. It exploded, sending gore and ooze everywhere. A giant cross took its place. Unit-02 was at the epicenter of the explosion and remained kneeling, clearly very fatigued and damaged from battle. Unit-00 helped Unit-02 up.

"Dammit, I'm alright!" Asuka said. She was panting heavily and clearly very wounded. Unit-02 went back to one knee.

William slowly walked towards the Magma angel. It started firing successive beam blasts at Unit-04. Unit-04 dodged to the right and began to sprint. On the way William threw the Progressive Knife into the dirt.

"IS THIS ALLLL!?" William yelled.

Like a howling gale, he leapt over the angel, grabbing its head on the way down in a twisting maneuver and forcing it to the dirt.

_Everything… You took everything…_ William mused with clenched teeth.

He lunged at the downed angel repeatedly, knocking it into the dirt. He proceeded to grab the angel by the mouth, and rip off its jaw which created a cavity in the angel all the way down to its lower body. Unit-04 than put both of its arms inside the cavity, and began to lift the angel off the ground. William tore to opposite sides, causing the angel to split nearly in half, exposing the spinal cord. He forced the angel back onto the ground, and began to eat its core. An enormous cross shot up into the sky followed by a massive explosion.

_What the…_ thought Misato.

"Has Unit-04 entered a berserk mode?"

"No." Michaels said with a grave look evident upon his face.

"William is still in control right now."

The pilots watched in shock at the gory affair unfolding before their eyes.

"William…" Shinji said.

They were too shocked to know how to respond. He had literally saved their lives… However it was disturbing how Unit-04 had ended this angel.

_He's still on our side, right?_ Shinji thought.

The pointed angel yet remained.

Unit-04 sprinted over to it. Unit-04 dodged some projectiles which were a feeble attempt by the angel. Unit-04 began to walk slowly, bringing its Absolute Terror field to the front, making the explosions worthless. When he reached the angel's core, he punched down upon the exposed core, and it instantly exploded. Another cross lined the sky of Tokyo-3 that night.

_We… actually could survive this._ Thought Misato.

"Just one more angel!" she exclaimed.

* * *

Everyone looked up and realized just how close the eye was to them now. The ominous orange eye in the sky looked ever towards them, and it was accelerating at an incredible pace now.

"30 seconds till impact!" Maya said.

Unit-04 instantly began sprinting towards a hill at the other side of Tokyo-3

_Not yet… Not yet!_ William grit his teeth.

"15 seconds…"

Unit-02 was practically out of commission. Asuka jerked on the controls.

"Start! Start Dammit!"

However, there was too much integral damage from the encounter and she was losing her synchronization rate fast.

Unit-00 and Unit-01 began running after William.

"Asuka don't worry! We've got this!" Shinji yelled, as he and Rei began to run after William.

_I hope we do…_

"Rei we have to use our AT fields!" Shinji said, ignoring the pain in his legs.

_Dammit…_ thought Shinji. His internal battery clock was dangerously close to running out. He had 30 seconds left.

Unit-04 perched itself on top of the hill, and readied itself for the angel that was plummeting towards earth as a meteor. A massive eye that was itself the size of half of the city of Tokyo-3 looked down upon the earth with one sinister goal in mind...

William set its AT field to the maximum setting as the eye began to make contact.

The person from his vision kept flashing across his memory.

_Dammit! Don't waste this chance!_ He thought.

The angel made contact, forcing its own massive AT field down upon the earth. William was unprepared for this kind of force. He grunted from exertion. The magnitude of this AT field was simply impossible to hold up with an EVA unit. This realization manifested inside William's head. He instantly had to kneel, his arms outstretched as if holding the weight of the world on his shoulders. His feet were sinking into the hill, and despite all his strength, the angel was still making progress downwards. Trees went flying from that spot and buildings were leveled in the area from the sheer exertion of the Absolute Terror field.

_I'm sorry… I guess I couldn't make it count in the end..._

"William! We're here!"

Unit-00 and Unit-01 got on both sides of Unit-04 and instantly applied their maximum AT fields.

"UGGGHHHH!" Shinji yelled in sheer exertion.

William was surprised that he had help. He looked at his fellow pilots. Suddenly he could stand again. An end was in sight.

_Yes…_ William thought.

_It was not all in vain_.

Shinji was using all of his strength. With the combined efforts of all three pilots, it looked like they had successfully stopped its descent. It now stood in midair, glaring at the EVA units who were blocking its descent furiously.

Shinji looked at his timer.

05… 04… 03…

_Shit…_

"I'm almost out of power! Hurry!"

William's eyes widened.

_No…_

Unit-01 stood there lifeless with its arms outstretched towards the sky.

William felt the same impossible exertion return from before. He breathed heavily and realized that they were being pushed down into the hill. Unit-04 faced Unit-00. Rei looked at him on the video feed. There was an obvious exertion taking place on her face.

_I can't stand that look..._ he thought. The girl with crimson eyes was suffering.

In his mind's eye, William placed the person from his dream over Unit-00.

_Not again… I won't lose someone again_. He thought.

Unit-00 was beginning to kneel as well.

"NOT AGAIN!" He yelled. He began to cough up blood from the exertion. He looked to his own timer.

30… 29… 28…

"Get to the core!" he yelled to Rei.

William transferred all of the weight onto himself and was practically laying on the hill now, his hands outstretched in the air.

"Alright!" she responded.

Unit-00 crawled over to William's position and stood over Unit-04. She began to attempt and neutralize the AT field.

_I have to do this…_ she thought.

_I must protect Shinji!_

10…9…8…

Unit 04's back was being pushed into the hill, and his arms were about to give way.

Rei tore at the Absolute Terror field and placed her hands in it. They began to burn, but she ignored the pain. A narrow window of opportunity opened in the Angel's AT field, and Rei instantly leapt upwards, stabbing up with her Prog knife extended.

2…1…0

Red blood poured from the angel's lifeless body and flooded the desolate remains of Tokyo-3. An iconic cross lined the night sky as the angel's body hit the earth with a resounding thud, covering a majority of Tokyo-3 and taking many buildings with it.

* * *

William awoke, a searing pain evident throughout his body. He was bandaged all over and he wore a hospital gown.

"You know son… you really are a hero." Michaels said.

William turned to his left, to see Michaels standing at the door, with several NERV personal behind him.

"For what it's worth… I know that some stuff has happened. But…I think I'm starting to trust you." He said.

Misato was behind him and she smiled and waved at William.

William's eyes widened as he stared at the Commander. He moved his arms, but realized that they were both handcuffed to the bed.

"Between you and me" Michaels said, getting closer to William.

"I don't think it's right for a hero to be kept here, like a prisoner."

William looked at the Commander long and hard, and then rolled over, looking at the wall.

"You're probably causing him more injury… seriously let him rest." Misato said with a smirk on her face.

"He deserves it. I mean, he did save the world."

"You're right. He did." Michaels said.

As he turned to leave Michaels looked at him before turning off the light.

"Rest up… Hero."

William lay in the darkness staring at the wall... he clenched his fists.

* * *

Author's Note: Thank you for the reviews! I hope you enjoyed reading. Sorry that this chapter took a while to come out. Seriously, every chapter I've written has been longer than the one before. I don't know how much longer this trend will continue… Until next time!


	6. Awakening

**After Third Impact –**

All that lay on the horizon was a plethora of jagged and gnarled rocks. The post-apocalyptic scenery made the previous remains of Tokyo-3 look like civilization. The red sky that was etched permanently overhead added an ever-present sense of dread. William sat down on a rock to take a break. He had been walking for three days straight without seeing another soul. He had slept under the disturbed crimson sky for a few hours at a time… all alone. The isolation was starting to get to him, although he was well-accustomed to being alone.

_How long has it been?_ He thought.

William had genuinely lost track of time. He wasn't sure how long he had been in that entry plug and how long it had been since…

He shook his head.

William stood up and looked towards the horizon… painful memories etched in his mind. He kept having that vivid dream… He could never quite catch up with someone down a deserted highway.

William froze in place and came back to reality.

"Could it be…?"

Oh the horizon he saw the faint tint of orange, signifying a campfire. With haste, he took off towards that location. He was simply relieved to see signs of people… However it was no time to throw caution to the wind. He touched the strap on his thigh that held his combat knife.

He approached the site very carefully, staying close to the jagged rocks in the background and what little scorched brush remained on land. He began to hear murmurs. He hid behind a rock that was a mere fifteen feet away. There appeared to be five people huddled around the fire. They consisted of four adults and one child. The atmosphere was one of total gloom and the people looked absolutely lifeless. William inhaled deeply and decided to reveal himself.

"Someone's… Someone's coming!" one of the men yelled. One of the other men withdrew a Beretta pistol from his shirt-pocket, and everyone faced towards William's direction.

William approached slowly, arms raised above his head.

"Hey, I don't want any trouble." He said, as he was unsure what to say in that situation. He looked at the man with the drawn weapon.

The man looked at him, finger pressed on the trigger.

"What do you want here? We have nothing!"

Another man spoke up and motioned towards him to withdraw his weapon.

"Someone is out here? Do you know what this means? There may be others."

The older man walked to William's side.

"You are the first person we have seen in days. You are lucky to get a group of our size in these parts. Tell me where did you come from?"

William wasn't quite sure how to respond.

"I… emerged from the sea." He pointed back from whence he came, towards the amber ocean.

"You came from there… but… how?"

A little girl looked at him wide-eyed.

"Wow! You came from the ocean?"

The old man looked very perplexed.

"But… that shouldn't be possible…" he mused.

_No one comes from over there..._

He shook his head and changed the subject.

"Please, join us. We have some provisions." He motioned to a cart which held some belongings.

"Th… Thank you." William said, taken aback by the man's kindness.

William stepped closer, but the man did not withdraw his weapon.

"I wouldn't embrace our visitor so fast. Look what he's wearing…" he muttered, as he pulled back the hammer on his pistol.

William stopped walking, suddenly feeling the reality of the threat.

"He's an EVA pilot… That's how he survived!"

Now the man arose with a killer-intent focused on the young man.

William stood there and looked to the ground.

"Well… we should still help…" the old man began. He was swiftly interrupted.

"Don't you know who this is? I recognized him the second I saw him!"

William clenched his fist, memories coming to him fast now.

"You're that damn American pilot! You are that FAILURE!"

By now the man was inching closer towards William. William dropped to his knees and looked at the ground feeling great shame at those words.

"Hey… come now" The old man tried to diffuse the situation, but to no avail.

"Leave us to dry?... YOU DAMN EVA PILOTS!"

William's eyes began to tear over slightly. He felt such rage… but he knew he couldn't refute the man's words. What was worse than his anger was the shame at the truth of those words.

William covered his face with his hand, trying to erect some sort of a barrier between them. He couldn't bear to face the man… But his words still crept through.

"You are the reason why this all happened!" By now the man was a foot away from William, and the gun mere inches from his skull.

The other people at the campfire watched with disbelief at what was transpiring.

The little girl was crying at the situation, and her mother was trying to console her.

"I know… It's… all my fault." William managed to say through clenched teeth and tears of his own.

"In the end I couldn't do anything…" He proclaimed as he punched the ground.

There was a heavy silence in the air for a moment. The old man approached the man.

"Please, don't do this. I know he's an EVA pilot but… we can't do this."

"He's probably with them… they all are!" he responded.

William just stayed in that position. All of his time piloting EVA? All of his talent? All of that paled in the judging eyes of this sincere man who was speaking the truth… The shame was simply suffocating.

_Can I… really let it end this way?_ He suddenly thought.

Sure, a part of him felt like he deserved to die to his great failure, but then he remembered his teammates.

_Shinji…_

"Where is Shinji?" William said suddenly.

"Where are the other pilots? Please… I'll leave… I just have to find him."

The man still pointed the gun at his face, showing absolutely no sympathy towards his plea.

"A boy came by here wearing an EVA suit… but that was over a week ago." The old man said.

William's eyes widened at this.

"Where was he going?" He asked hurriedly.

"You could have done something… You could have helped." The man holding the gun said, not responding to the new conversation.

"You call yourself an EVA PILOT!... You're worthless… They're only in it for themselves."

At this William closed his eyes as emotion washed over him.

"I'm… sorry. I'M SORRY!" He was choking back tears.

"I don't deserve to pilot EVA… I let everyone down…"

Finally, William looked up from his prostrate position on the ground.

"But I just need to find him…"

"He went that way." The old man said.

"Apparently, there are more people far to the north."

William looked up at the old man, than directly at the pistol pointed at his head.

The man finally withdrew the gun.

"Just go… your kind isn't welcome here." He turned his back on William.

William slowly arose and began walking towards the direction the man was pointing.

"Be careful traversing that road… they will kill you on sight" the old man said.

William nodded, but quickly left the camp. He began with a walk, but it turned into a run. He wasn't even thinking about the danger in the old man's words. Where his hopes were originally high at the sign of humanity, now only the dull pain of truth and judgment remained and he felt a need to return to the isolation… The shame was overwhelming.

The man returned to the fire and put his beretta back in his coat pocket. He sat down and looked to the ground solemnly.

_I believed in you... We all did_.

* * *

The boy stared at the sea. The amber waves stretched for miles along the horizon. There was no cool breeze like there normally would have been under the endless red sky.

"You know… I still feel you calling to me."

The only response was silence.

"It doesn't make sense but I know that you are out there… You have to be."

Shinji smiled sadly as he looked out over the amber waters.

"Just wait for me a little longer, okay?"

Several miles out from the shore, there remained the tangled gory remains of Lilith's giant white head that resembled Rei's face. It was split down the middle and one of the eyeballs was hanging out of its socket in a gruesome fashion.

_Rei…_ he thought, as a tear streamed down his face.

"Yeah… I know that I should not have come here… If I could just…"

Suddenly Shinji's eyes widened.

_Is that… a person!?_

There was a naked man hunched over several yards near the shore. He clenched the sand as he vomited onto the beach.

_Did he… come from the LCL?_ Shinji thought, with disbelief.

Shinji quickly took off in a run towards the man's position.

"Hey! Get away from there fast!" he yelled.

The man looked up at Shinji. He looked very confused and perplexed. He tried to stand up, but he fell back to his feet. This man had no strength left in his body.

"I… I…." The man managed to say.

Shinji looked back to the sea of LCL, only to notice that not far from the man, the waves were crashing onto the shore more quickly and violently.

_SHIT!_

"RUN!" Shinji yelled, as he sprinted with all his might.

The waves were hitting the shore in a cacophony now, and it looked like something was about to emerge from the amber liquid.

_I WON'T MAKE IT IN TIME!_

Shinji was seventy-five feet away by now, and was sprinting with all that was within him.

Just then, a creature emerged from the ocean. It was definitely taller than a human, yet it was angeloid in appearance. The being had some terrifying, grizzly features and it displayed a mouth of insidious sharpened teeth. It instantly ran towards the man at a tremendous speed and jumped on top of him.

The man looked at it with terror in his eyes and a lack of understanding.

The beast was on his body and began shredding his flesh limb from limb. The creature was literally devouring the man. He had bitten through his neck and was already eating the torso. The creature was shaking with excitement. The poor man never had a chance to defend himself.

Shinji finally arrived at the gruesome scene and was a mere twenty feet away.

_No…_

All Shinji could do was watch the scene unfold before his very eyes.

"It's the time of tribute." Shinji muttered under his breath.

The angeloid creature was halfway through devouring the man's remains, when he noticed Shinji at the scene. Its eyes widened and it began to tremble violently with excitement. The prospect of a surface-dweller was so tantalizing. It took off in a sprint towards the boy.

Shinji watched the beast approaching and looked at it with serious, focused eyes.

He calmly whipped around the gun that was strapped over his back and took a step towards the fast-approaching beast. Shinji pointed the 12-gauge pump action shot gun right at the creatures head and pumped the forearm once. The creature opened its mouth and its tongue was flailing about wildly. When he was a mere five feet away, Shinji pulled the trigger. The angeloid being was flung back, a bluish-black gore spewing from the beast. His head and top half of its body were literally gone. The blood sprayed onto Shinji.

Shinji strapped the shotgun back around to his back and stared at the water.

_Can… people come out of their own will?_

He stared out at the mesmerizing LCL.

"Rei…"

The thought was insane, but what he had witnessed was equally unbelievable. A man had emerged from the sea.

Shinji looked down at the dead angeloid creature.

He clenched his fist.

"You ruined everything…" he muttered as he frowned with great intensity.

Shinji turned around and began walking away.

A siren went off in the far distance.

_I've overstayed my welcome… It's time to get back to the high ground._

He paused and looked back at the giant white carcass that was Lilith many miles out in the sea of LCL.

"Just wait a little longer… there's something I have to do."

* * *

A consciousness began to spark from deep within the amber liquid. Crimson eyes awoke.

_All is not well…_

"I don't get it… isn't this what you wanted?"

_I sensed you beyond the waters..._

The thought was inexorably linked with thousands… millions of other thoughts simultaneously across all realms of thought and space.

Rei began to feel something that she had not for a long time… a sense of being... a sense of individuality. She began to have brief flashes of what it was like to be her… not all simultaneously.

_Why…_

"Why does it hurt?"

Rei blinked. The train of thought had ushered speech to her thought. The consciousness was beginning to isolate itself from others.

The image of a young boy flashed across her mind countless times… infinite times.

_He's not here. He rejected you._

"Shinji…" she said.

Materialization began to form around this stray thought in the endless sea of LCL. Rei began to feel that amidst being linked with everyone in a higher form of consciousness, she was more alone than she had ever been before… This thought began to birth a physical body. Sure, there were countless other thoughts there to, but within that materialization was the beginnings of an individual Absolute Terror field.

"Why wouldn't you stay…?"

_Was I not enough?_

_Did you want to be away from me that badly?_

"You left me…"

Tears began to cloud those piercing crimson eyes.

_Now I am all alone… but with everyone._

"But… they are not you."

It mattered not that the girl was merged with every soul in that sea of LCL. There was someone missing who she valued more than life itself. This idea in itself was making Rei feel like she wanted to hide something from the group.

_All is not well here_.

"You would not come here… to be with us… me."

_All is not well here. _

Another spark occurred in the sea. Suddenly Rei's eyes widened with recognition.

"You wanted individuality… and you wanted me?"

Flashes of Shinji standing near the sea flickered constantly throughout the LCL.

_But… can both be achieved?_

"You didn't want to share…"

_Shinji!_

Suddenly, this thought felt like doing anything to be united with one other… one who was not there… one who she could never be united with past physical boundaries and merging consciousness.

_All is not well… you know this_.

_We are changing…_

"This is not what was intended…"

_I... just want Shinji_.

Among the giant entity of merged souls and thoughts, there were… other thoughts. Darker thoughts which sewed discord among the merged human souls. The entity was still growing… although its new inhabitants and thoughts were not human at all. Flashes of angeloid beings appeared all across Lilith's egg. New thoughts had been joining the entity… It would not be long until the character of this evolved being changed entirely. These were terrible thoughts that everyone experienced simultaneously… thoughts of devouring and fear. Thoughts that attempted to use this union for their own purposes.

"We have felt it for some time…"

_It is becoming corrupted_.

"Than…" the thought said slowly.

"I must be… me… I must leave."

_WE ARE HERE._

That last thought sent trembles down her spine. It was not soothing and all-understanding as humans who completely understand each other and agree to give up their right to individuality. Rather, it sounded like something totally foreign without the interests of the inhabitants in mind.

"This is not what was intended."

Rei Ayanami materialized in the amber liquid. Her nude body sank into the depths of the ocean. Thoughts bombarded her and attempted to dissuade her from leaving the entity. However, her decision had been made. The LCL… it looked so… different from outside of it. Although it hurt enormously to feel the physical barriers back up, and a mental block from the whole of merged souls, somehow she felt that this was worth it. Her individual AT field was pushing against the entity itself with a tremendous inner strength. Her thoughts were enough to that degree that she had the sheer will and strength to leave the consciousness. Perhaps the risk of getting hurt was a price which was worth paying as opposed to remaining in a place of safety without the one she truly desired.

"Shinji…" she said as she floated in place.


End file.
